Oathkeeper Or Oblivion
by SoulEaterDark
Summary: Kairi is one of Ansem's most peculiar patients yet. She talks to shadows, she waves to the light filtering in through her window. She gives them names, "Sora" and "Riku", and she cries when she is in absolute darkness, because "they" appear. SK AU
1. Them

_I'm not really sure what brought this on, I was just thinking and the idea kind of popped into my head. Please note that this story will NOT be one of those "Kairi's insane and cuts herself" stories, because that is actually the farthest idea from this story. And please, if you have any comments or crit I would love to hear it, anything to make my writing better- don't be nasty though. Also, if you can, stay in for the next chapter, I'll try and make it longer- this is most definitely going to be an interesting, and at times scary, story. _

_Enjoy! ^_^ _

_Disclaimer- I don't own Kingdom Hearts....  
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Oathkeeper Or Oblivion_**

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"Kairi?"

Her hair fell over her shoulders, framing her pale skinned face. Kairi's eyes were rimmed with red; tears welled and fell down her cheeks. She bit her lip, clenched her hands over the white dress she wore.

"Kairi, do you hear me?" the only movement was her hands- she held the hem of her dress even tighter between her fingers. She arced her feet and pressed her toes into the cold tile floor. As she blinked another tear found its way down her face.

"Kairi," the speaker, her doctor, saw movement beneath her eyes. Her mouth, which had been slightly slack, closed as he said her name a third time. Ansem reached across the table to her, palm open and up, "Let me see your hands."

She shook her head, looking up at him finally with wide, innocent eyes that were made vibrant by her tears. She caved in on herself, shrinking away from him.

They were in a small white room, a one-way full length window on wall opposite Kairi and to her right. There were dome shaped fluorescent lights on the ceiling, showing off the pure color of the room. Kairi sat on a metal folding chair, her hands on her knees under the table in front of her. Across from her was a man with blond hair and orange eyes.

His one hand still extended over the table, Ansem smiled comfortingly at her, "Come now, Kairi, you know me." She met his eyes for a brief moment.

She was shaking as she bit her lip a little harder, unwinding her fingers from the stretched fabric of her dress and bringing them up to the edge of the table. Her fingertips poked over the metal surface, Ansem reached forward just a little more, encouraging her.

It took close to five minutes, Kairi taking timid, small movements to sliding her hands over the scuffed table, the plastic bracelet on her wrist skimming it. Finally, she had them close enough that Ansem held her hands in his for a moment, looking over her birdlike, thin fingers and porcelain covered bones.

There were multiple scars blemishing her hands, small, shallow cuts over her knuckles, around her cuticles and, as he turned her hands over, her palms as well. There was a fresh red bite mark in the crease of her index finger on her left hand; Ansem looked up with raised eyebrows,

"Biting yourself, now?" Kairi looked away, finally saying,

"It…It wasn't me."

"Then who was it?" He saw her eyes flick to the small black camera in the corner of the room, "Stay with me, Kairi." She looked up at him again; her voice was quiet as though a mere whisper would break the sound barrier.

"Them."

"And who is 'Them'?" Kairi bit her lip again but stayed silent. "Kairi?"

She bit her lip harder, at the first sight of blood Ansem stood, let go of her hands and motioned at the windows for the nurses.

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The nurses had already made their rounds and by eight all the lights were off, the only light was the natural rays of the moon coming in through the glass and steel grates over Kairi's bedroom window. The air was silent, save for the gentle whir of one of the generators near her window.

The sheets stuck to her legs, her hair matted to her head and face as she struggled weakly- the personnel at the institute had decided that Kairi had, in fact, been hurting herself and restraints were necessary for the next few nights, until her next meeting with Ansem the day after the next. She hated the restraints, they were scratchy and uncomfortable, and she could never sleep with them on.

Tugging her left arm down as hard as she could and getting no where, Kairi huffed, blew some hair from her face and lay down, defeated.

"_Kairi?"_ her eyes snapped open, she craned her head up as much as she could and grinned, breathing out a whisper,

"Sora!"


	2. Moonlight

_Howdy ^_^ I can't believe the responses I got for this :D So, here's the next chapter, the one after this should be up maybe Tuesday, latest Wednesday of this week. :) As I said, I made this one longer. _

_Enjoyyyyy and please leave a comment on your way out, and crit is appreciated. :D_

EDIT- Okay, I've never been told that I'm ripping off another story before, but someone did review saying that I am. Apparently there's a story called "Shadows In the Asylum" that is very similar to this- But I've never heard of it nor read the book before. So, really, if you think I'm ripping something off then sign in so we can actually talk about it and PM me or at least give me the benefit of the doubt, I've asked friends and they've never heard of it either. Sorry if I offended anyone, but this is from MY imagination, thank you very much- and I don't appreciate it when someone accuses me of ripping something off when I'd never in my life think of doing that. (8/10/09)

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Oathkeeper Or Oblivion_**

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Kairi looked into the ray of moonlight spilling out from her window. There were long crisscrossed shadows cast onto the floor, extending up the far wall like a strange doorway. In a way, it was.

A moment passed and Kairi's hopeful smile wavered, "Sora?" she said slightly louder, his voice was cheerful,

"_Hang on!" _Kairi smiled again.

Specks of dust could be seen by the light, swirling at first in a natural pattern but then stopping still in the air. Light bounced off of them as they started to swirl slowly in a downward spiral, congealing and meshing together and building up on top of each other to form a solid column, a mass of light. Just as soon as the column was erected, it collapsed on itself, leaving a spiky haired, smiling boy in its wake.

He was dressed in a pair of baggy white sweatpants and a matching shirt, bare foot and completely plain with the exception of the crown necklace resting over his chest. Sora's fingers were latched onto the crisscross metal grate over Kairi's window, his smile grew wider and he waved, _"Sorry that took me so long, Kairi. It was a little harder tonight." _Kairi nodded,

"It's okay." She whispered, "Where's Riku?" Sora glanced around the room,

"_He's on his way." _In the corner of the room farthest from Kairi's bed, a mass of shadows lingered, so dark she couldn't see the wall beneath it. Her smile grew,

"Can one of you get me out of here?" Sora nodded, took one step out of the pillar of light that was cast on the ground and shivered. His bare foot touched the floor, tapping it gently like he was testing water, and then stepped fully out of the light. His being flickered,

"_One sec…"_ He took another cautious, slow step forward, Kairi wrinkled her nose,

"If it's too much, don't do it. Maybe Riku can."

"_Maybe I can 'what'?"_ Kairi looked back at the corner of the room where the mass of shadows had been growing. Walking from it now was another boy, tall and dressed in an all black version of the clothes Sora wore.

"_She wants me to untie her." _Sora looked back at Riku and waved, Riku waved back and walked past him.

"_You can do her hands, then."_ Sora nodded, took a few quick steps forward and flickered again, like a light being turned on and off. His face twisted to one of pain and Kairi's eyes grew wide,

"Sora…" Riku looked back at Sora,

"_Don't push it."_ Sora shook his head and forced himself to move slow.

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As a doctor and professor of the mind and mental state, Ansem was praised as one of the best. However many patients he had helped and even possibly cured, Kairi was his most difficult. In the last session with her, the few words she had said were the most he'd gotten from her in the few months she had been under his care.

It was a shame; she was, after all, only sixteen.

However painstaking and frustrating his work with her had been, the words she had spoken were well worth it.

Also over the past week he had noticed something else even stranger than her lack of communication- every session for the first moment of seeing him, when the nurse said,

"_Perhaps you should greet Doctor Ansem this time."_ Kairi flinched at his name. Fear left traces under her eyes in the form of purple marks, hollow marks. It wasn't "Doctor Ansem" it was "Ansem". Just the name, the word.

"_What meaning could it hold?"_ he wrote the question that had lingered in his head since seeing her last. He supposed he was quiet the old fashioned type as he preferred to write down his days notes and work, rather than typing it. He always took special care with Kairi's section, as he did with his other stubborn patients. He logged every detail pertaining to Kairi's state, especially the foreboding tone in her voice as she said softly,

"_It was them._"

"_Who are __them_?" scrawled letters on paper now worn down and wrinkled, the ink smudging as his hand swept over it again and again, line after line.

Her parents had called to check on her today, asking when they could see her,

"Soon, very soon. Within the next week, I would hope, if her condition could get any better." He had to give them hope, but just enough so that they would let her stay under his care. He couldn't tell them of the bite marks because, as he mulled the image in his head over he realized something both strange and interesting. The bite mark on her finger, the shape and size, were too large to be her teeth, and it looked as though she had ripped her finger away from whatever had done it. As though, in thought, whoever had bitten her had _fangs_.

There was a funny thought—_But, if not Kairi, then who?_

The question he had asked and asked still. _Who?_

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Kairi sat in between Sora and Riku on the bed, cross-legged with the hem of her skirt drawn up over her knees. Sora and Riku sat with their knees drawn up, relaxing as they talked.

"_So how was your visit today?" _Kairi remembered what she had said as Sora asked,

"Umm…" she bit her lip, found it sore and said with her voice still a whisper, "He saw the bite mark."

Riku draped his arm across his knees, "What'd he say?" Kairi twiddled her thumbs in her lap,

"He asked who did it. I…I said 'them', and when he asked who 'they' were, I bit my lip until it bled. I wanted to get out of there, it was too intense today." She felt Sora's hand on her shoulder,

"_You okay?" _she nodded,

"That's why I was all tied up tonight; he told the nurses I was biting myself or something."

"_It's a good thing we came by then."_ Riku looked over at Sora, Sora nodded,

"_Yeah. The Heartless could've gotten to you."_ Kairi uncrossed her legs and drew them up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

"I know." She let out a breath of warm air, looking out to the window, "I…I wish I could go outside. They won't let me anymore." They looked to the window too, Riku asked,

"_Want us to open the window?_" Kairi smiled and shook her head,

"It's locked, and they have alarms. I'll get out, I just need to start talking and figure out a way to convince them I'm not insane. It'd be so simple if I could just show you to them." Sora shook his head,

"_You can't, Kairi. You're the only one that can see us."_ She stood up, crossed to the window and clasped her hands behind her back,

"Why? Why me?" Riku looked to Sora, Sora shrugged and said,

"_You're special."_ She snorted,

"That's not vague." Riku laughed and said,

"_It's your heart. It's light, pure." _She looked back with raised eyebrows,

"Pure?" They nodded; Kairi shook her head and turned back to the window, resting her temple against the grate. "And no one else's is?" Sora stood up then too, walked to her and put his hand on her back,

"_There are people with pure hearts, Kairi, just not around here. Not with hearts like yours, anyway." _She shook her head,

"Where'd you guys come from?" Riku got up then but was careful to stay out of the light cast on the ground by the moon,

"_It's hard to explain. And it's getting late."_ Sora blinked, shook his head as if in revelation,

"_Riku's right. Get back in bed, you need sleep, we'll protect you tonight."_ Kairi crossed her arms, looked back at the bed doubtfully,

"I can never sleep with those restraints, they're all itchy and I don't like not being able to move." Nevertheless, she plodded back over to the bed and laid down, "Can you guys be here when I wake up?" Sora looked at Riku, Riku shrugged,

"_We'll try. I need shadow, remember?" _she nodded,

"I have an idea, don't worry." Riku nodded, "Even if just one of you is here, I just…I don't like waking up alone. I'll ask them to keep the lights off or something." She put her hands up, "Okay, I'm ready."

She saw the sadness in their eyes, the slowness that Sora was forced to move with and shut her eyes to keep the tears at bay. It always hurt when she slept, because it meant not seeing them.

Sora and Riku, the Light and Dark, her best friends.


	3. Shadows

_You guys are amazing. ^_^ Thank you guys, all of you, for the wonderful responses I've gotten, you've really helped me keep going with this. So, as a thank you, this chapter is special and dedicated to all of you guys that have reviewed or are reading. :)_

_I hope you enjoy! I'll probably update around Friday or Saturday at the latest, but not Sunday because my Sweet Sixteen is then. :D _

_Enjoy the chapter!  
_

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Oathkeeper or Oblivion**_

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Light streamed into the window to Kairi's room, filling it and glaring off the white walls. Her head was spinning when she woke up; the sleep she had gotten was lost to her with restless dreaming. The nurses had already come in and unbuckled her restraints and on the floor beside her bed was Sora, looking out to the sun. Kairi cleared her throat and he jumped, looked up at her with wide blue eyes,

"_Good morning!" _she smiled, glanced to the doorway and found it open just slightly and said in a voice not quite a whisper,

"Good morning, Sora." She sat up and yawned, stretching her arms above her head and smiling as she shuffled her feet until the sheets fell down. Kairi climbed over the side of bed, sitting right next to Sora and crossing her legs at the knees, she asked, "Any Heartless last night?" Sora nodded, pulled his arms behind his head and leaned back,

"_A few, Riku said he was sorry, but he had to go. There weren't enough shadows for him to stay." _Kairi nodded,

"It's okay, as long as one of you is around then I don't mind. This place…It's so…" she glanced at the door, hearing footsteps in the hall. "Depressing." She muttered.

Sora rolled his eyes, _"I know, by the way, that guy down the hall that you talk to in the lounge had a fit last night. Riku and I saw them dragging him down the hall._" Kairi whipped around, her eyes wide,

"Who?" Sora shrugged,

"_The guy with the red hair." _Kairi shook her head,

"Axel?" Sora nodded,

"_Why's he in here anyway? He seems pretty normal, like you." _Kairi smiled, looked back at the door,

"He's a pyromaniac, he checked himself in after he almost set his girlfriend on fire." She shifted a little, subconsciously moving closer to Sora, "So…are you staying the whole day?" he grinned,

"_I can try."_

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"Excuse me, Doctor?" Ansem looked up at the sound of the knock on his door, one of the nurses stood in the doorway, poking her head in.

"Yes?" she met his eyes briefly, glanced down,

"Did you want to see that patient from yesterday, Kairi? You put her in your schedule." Ansem nodded, gathering the papers on his desk and fixing them, putting them in the right order.

"Yes, yes; get her ready for me, same room as always." The nurse gave him a curt nod and shut the door. Ansem pulled out Kairi's folder and tucked it under his arm, he winced at the sound of the chair scraping against the floor as he stood.

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"_So what do you do all day?" _Kairi shrugged, pressed the bottoms of her feet together absentmindedly,

"Wait for the day to pass," she was speaking normally now, another nurse had come by moments before and given her breakfast and had closed the door on her way out. The tray of pancakes and eggs sat forgotten in front of Kairi, though Sora was staring at it with hungry eyes. She looked up at him and smiled; Sora jumped and scratched the back of his head,

"_Sorry, I haven't eaten since-" _Kairi shook her head,

"Go ahead." Sora grinned and grabbed the tray, pulling it to himself. To anyone else other than Kairi it would appear the tray was floating in the air, as Sora set it down on his lap and grabbed the fork, and the food would just simply disappear from the air.

"_There's no knife…"_ Sora moved the pancakes around for a moment and Kairi said,

"Well, yeah, they think I'm hurting myself, remember? If I really wanted to I could always use a plastic knife." Sora blinked looked at the fork and shrugged,

"_Guess so…"_ there was a moment of silence and he saw Kairi looking towards the door. With her back turned to him, an idea popped into Sora's head. He scraped the pancakes off the edge of the fork, smirked, and jabbed her in the side. Kairi jumped and squeaked, the surprise on her face turning to a pout, then a smile as Sora started laughing, pushing the tray back onto the floor and dropping the fork.

"Sora!" He kept laughing, she said, "That's not fair, I can't do that to you!" Sora grinned, but his face paled as she said, "Fine, I'll just get Riku to get you back for me."

"_Um…Kairi?" _she crossed her arms,

"What?" Sora pointed meekly over her shoulder, when Kairi turned she found a nurse standing in the doorway, her eyebrows raised.

"There's something to tell your doctor, hm?" Kairi shook her head,

"Um…I was….um…" The nurse held up her hand, looked down at the clipboard she held in the other,

"Ansem would like to see you today, Kairi. I suppose he has good reason now." Kairi bit her lip, shot a glare at Sora and as she stood up motioned behind herself with her hand for him to follow.

"_Hehe…oops?" _Kairi forced a smile at the nurse as she walked out, shot a glare at Sora and kept walking as the nurse followed behind her. "_Wait…Your doctor's name is Ansem?" _Kairi nodded only slightly, trying to be subtle, _"__Ansem?_" she rolled her eyes,

"Yes." She hissed the word from behind clenched teeth, the nurse gave a sigh and Sora took the hint to be quiet.

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Ansem sat down across from Kairi, her folder was on the far corner of the table and she noticed that this time it was open, a pen sat next to it. She let her fingers trail on the edge of the table, trying not to look at Sora who was leaning on the table just beside her.

"Kairi, I'm sure you've noticed that today I wouldn't normally see you." Kairi nodded but kept her eyes on the blank surface of the table. Sora yawned and stretched his arms above his head, "However, what you said yesterday intrigued me. When I asked who had hurt you, you said 'them'. Who were you referring to?" Kairi glanced sideways at Sora, he put his hand on her shoulder,

"_You can tell him."_ Kairi nodded, more to herself in reassurance than to Sora, and bit her lip again. It was still sore, but the cut had scabbed over, Ansem said,

"Enough of that, Kairi." She jumped and looked up at him, unaware that he would be expecting her to try and find a way out. In truth, she wasn't looking for a quick way out or a way to avoid his question- she was trying to find the easiest way to tell him without prolonging her stay at that white-washed hotel.

"I…" she glanced at Sora again; he knelt down next to her,

"_Tell him they get their strength from the dark, you can even tell him about Riku and I, if you need to." _Kairi nodded again and said softly,

"When I said 'them'…" she took a deep breath, "When I said 'them' I meant the shadows." Ansem leaned forward in his seat, grabbed his pen and her folder and said as he started to write,

"Kairi, shadows can not breathe, they can not bite because they aren't living." Sora scoffed, Kairi ignored him,

"But…But you only say that because you can't see them." Ansem looked up with raised eyebrows,

"Explain, if you will." Kairi let her hands fall to her lap looked down at Sora and he smiled at her, she let her hand fall off her lap and reached for his hand.

"The shadows…I'm not talking about the shadows you get when you turn out the lights." She smiled a little at the coldness of Sora's attempt to hold her hand- it felt as though her skin was freezing over, his fingers weren't laced with hers but through hers, and she suppressed a shiver. "The shadows I'm talking about have shapes, you know, eyes and all that." She shrugged, looked down at the table again, "A-And I have friends that protect me from them- the bad shadows, I mean." Ansem's pen flew across the page, he looked up again and nodded for her to continue.

"_Go on, Kairi, its okay." _She smiled a little,

"I see them at night, mostly. There are these two boys…" her voice trailed off, she sorted her thoughts quickly and expelled her doubts. It was too late to turn back now, "They both…They're like opposites of each other, but they're best friends. The light has form too and…And the one I see there is Sora." The coldness in her hand spread through her bones and settled to a dull ache, the hair on the back of her neck stood up and gooseflesh covered her. "And the other one, the one I see in the dark, his name is Riku. He's not like the shadows that hurt me, he used to be but…But he's different now." She looked up cautiously; Ansem had stopped writing and shook his head,

"Kairi, you aren't making this up now, are you?" she shook her head, "Why did you wait so long to explain?" she looked down,

"I…I didn't…" she looked away from the table and to the floor, "You don't believe me. I thought you'd keep me here longer." Ansem sighed,

"Listen to yourself." Kairi felt the doubts she had swept away before come back, Sora's hand slid from hers and he stood behind her, both hands on her shoulders. "Shadows, Light and Dark- Why would you be the only one able to see them?"

"I…it's because…" she felt a sudden coldness come over the lower part of her face, she bit her lip,

"_Don't tell him, Kairi."_ The coldness faded and found its way back to her shoulder,

"I…I don't know." Ansem shuffled his papers back into order,

"Perhaps this is enough for today, I'm pressed for time, I have another appointment soon." He stood up, gathered her papers and said, "I may get you started on something for your hallucinations, but I suppose it can wait until tomorrow. I'd like to know if you see these 'shadows' tonight, and how often you do, Kairi." He headed for the door, Kairi let out a breath she was unaware she'd been holding and as the nurse motioned for her to come, she stood and bit her lip.

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"_I'm sorry, I guess we shouldn't have told them."_ She shook her head,

"It's okay. Ansem…He just…I knew he wouldn't get it. I barely had the time to explain everything to him before he told me to leave. I think…Maybe I _should_ try and explain it to him. I just…I won't take what they give me." Sora nodded,

"_We have to tell Riku, you know._" She nodded, rolled over on the bed and sighed,

"He'll be mad." Sora patted her shoulder and settled down next to her,

"_Yeah, I know. You know he misses your sister."_ Kairi looked up, eyebrows raised,

"Naminè?" Sora grinned and nodded,

"_I think he kind of liked her. He said he misses her drawings."_ Kairi grinned too, shook her head,

"He's hopeless." Sora snickered,

"_Now, now, what's this I hear?" _the smiles faded from their faces. The voice was deep, mocking. They looked to the other side of the room, where a few lightly shaded shadows had spread on the ground. It was later in the day, the sun was setting and the sky outside was red.

Kairi scooted up against the wall, Sora growled and stood up,

"_Get out of here, Ansem."_

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**I couldn't resist a cliffy, or the Riku/Namine pairing, it's too cute. XD Leave a review on your way out! :) _


	4. Truth

_I love this chapter, it may be my favorite of all of them so far. By the way, I'm really not sure how long this story is going to be, but I'm going to make it as long as I can without completely killing the storyline. I definitely have some great ideas for this story though. Oh yes, and Namine will make her first appearance next chapter. :) _

_I should be updating around Tuesday or Wednesday. Enjoy the chapter!!  
_

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Oathkeeper or Oblivion**_

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"_Now, now, Sora what kind of a greeting is that?"_ Sora shook his head and held out his right hand, ribbons of light appeared that seemed to draw off from the surrounding sunlight. Kairi pressed herself against the wall, her eyes wide as she watched the light noticeably grow dimmer, what she could only describe as a ball of white formed in Sora's hand, illuminating the air around it. Still, the air seemed darker, as though the sunset was fast forwarded; she looked out the window and saw the sun still in its perch in the sky, in the same spot.

Ansem, one of the only shadows Kairi had ever seen that looked like a human being (but most definitely was _not_, she reminded herself) stood at the juncture of the light and dark, the tips of his boots just met the point of light and she could've swore she saw steam rising from them, as though it burned him. Unlike most creatures of the dark, Ansem had tan skin but orange eyes strikingly similar to Dr. Ansem, Kairi's 'psychiatrist'. His hair slicked back and long, flowing white and tinged blue, he stood in clothes more complicated than the simple sweats Sora and Riku wore. Though they were all black, he wore a trench coat that skimmed the floor, pants that looked somewhat like jeans, and boots that came to his knees and what seemed like hundreds of little straps and belts were around his boots and forearms.

The one other, possibly the worst, distinction the shadow known as Ansem held was that he actually had a weapon, a sword strapped to his back with the scariest, most jagged looking blade Kairi had ever seen.

The shadows on the ground inched forward as Sora drew light in from the air,

"_Why would I be happy to see __you_?" He pulled his arm back as though he was getting ready to swing, Ansem threw his head back and laughed,

"_Fool. Use up the last of your precious light and you'll plunge the room into darkness."_ Sora faltered, glanced back at Kairi.

"_You aren't getting any closer to Kairi."_ Ansem shook his head and took a step forward, just a mere inch towards Sora. He reached back and took hold of the handle on his sword.

"_It isn't Kairi that I wish to get any closer to."_ Another inch forward. Sora backed up against the bed. The tip of Ansem's sword was shone in the dying light, it glowed angrily. Another inch forward.

"Sora…" Kairi scooted forward just the tiniest bit, Sora shook his head,

"_No, Kairi, stay back."_ Kairi sat back on her haunches but didn't move back any farther, Ansem's eyes strayed from Sora's to hers.

"_Looks like someone has a fan." _Kairi blushed but shook her head,

"Leave us alone." Ansem smirked, the light receded and he took another step forward. He pushed the blade of his sword out further, the edge grazed Sora's shirt, another inch or two and all Ansem had to do was _push­-_

Ansem gasped, the sword fell from his hand and clattered to the ground, Kairi clapped her hands over her ears as she watched him draw back. His eyes shut, his face twisted in anger. The arm around his neck tightened, Sora grinned,

"_Riku!"_ Ansem was hurled back onto the ground and Riku stepped to the side, his voice was cold,

"_Get out of here, Ansem."_ Ansem glared at him, his sword disappeared and he said,

"_Wait until nightfall, Riku."_ The shadows swallowed him and the room was silent for a moment. The orb of light in Sora's hand dispersed and the room was, again, half light and dark.

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Ansem sat at his desk, a half cup of lukewarm coffee by the lamp on his desk, his face in his hands. He sighed; Kairi's sister was visiting tomorrow and though he had made progress with Kairi it wasn't necessarily the kind of news her family would hope to hear. Also, Kairi had seemed so _sure _of herself that her "hallucinations" were real, as a matter of fact, he had noted how many times her eyes had strayed from him to the space next to her…

Ansem stood, shaking his head. There was something different about the look in Kairi's eyes, different than most of his patients that suffered from hallucinations, she held no trace of fear, no doubt. She was almost begging him to understand what she was saying.

He had to put his mind to rest.

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"_Why didn't you call me?"_ Sora looked down sheepishly,

"_I…Um…"_ Kairi smiled, got up from the bed and said,

"I think he was nervous, we both forgot." Riku rolled his eyes and shook his head. Kairi scratched the back of her head, a habit she'd picked up from the two of them, and said, "Um…So, Sora went with me to my surprise visit with Ansem today." She spared a glance up, Riku raised his eyebrows,

"_Why do I think you have bad news?"_ Sora laughed, he sounded nervous as he said,

"_Um…"_ Riku took a few steps closer, crossed his arms,

"_And?"_ Kairi started to twiddle her thumbs,

"Well…I kind of…told Ansem about you guys." Silence….and then,

"_What?!"_ Sora smiled meekly and said,

"_Well…She told him about the light and the dark, and us and….well, the shadows too." _ Riku held the bridge of his nose,

"_They'll keep her in here forever, now. Good going, guys."_ Sora grinned,

"_Actually, he wants to put her on medication, but he said he'd wait until tomorrow's visit though…So, maybe she can tell him she was joking?" _ Kairi laughed, sat back down on the bed,

"Like he'd believe that."

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Ansem sat down heavily in his chair, the disc that had recorded his session with Kairi earlier that day in his hand. He leaned down, hit the button on the hard drive of his computer and the drawer for the disc slid out. He put the disc in, shut the drawer and reached up for his cup, taking a huge gulp of it and blanching afterwards as cold coffee filled his mouth.

He hit the play button on the bottom of the screen, a dull, pixilated image of him and Kairi sitting across from each other at that old metal table sprang to life.

"_However, what you said yesterday intrigued me. When I asked who had hurt you, you said 'them'. Who were you referring to?" Kairi glanced sideways, _

"_You can tell him.__"_

Ansem paused the tape, rewinding it a few seconds, the voice in the tape was clear, as though a person sat there next to him and Kairi.

"_You can tell him."_ He put his hand to his mouth,

"Oh, God." He let the tape play,

"_Enough of that, Kairi." She jumped, looked up at him. _

"_I…."_

"_Tell him they get their strength from the dark, you can even tell him about Riku and I, if you want."_ Shaking, Ansem paused the tape and sat back.

What if the reason there was no doubt in Kairi's eyes was….Was because she had been telling the truth?

* * *

_^_^ _

_Please leave a review on your way out, and crit is appreciated! :)  
_


	5. Pictures

_Hiyo ^^ I decided this chapter had to be long if I wanted to fit everything that needed to happen in here. I must say, as of this moment I'm really not sure exactly what's going to happen in the end, but I have a nice idea. ^_^ _

_I hope you guys enjoy, comment and crit appreciated, and as promised, Namine makes her first appearance in here. :)_

_Enjoy!_

_(Edit- 7/30/09- Tried to fix up the grammar mistakes, if there's anything I missed PLEASE let me know, thanks!)  
_

* * *

**_Oathkeeper or Oblivion_**

------

Kairi woke early in the morning, her vision hazy and the light in her room blindingly bright. She jumped as a smiling face was pushed up close to hers,

"_Good morning, Kairi!" _she screeched, flailed her arms and rolled out of the bed, sending Sora into fits of laughter as one of the male attendants came running in.

"Everything okay?" He walked over to Kairi and held his hand out, helping her up as she grumbled and absentmindedly rubbed her hip. She cast a glare at the bed, which Sora was now rolling on.

"Fine," she mumbled, "There was a little annoying _pest."_ Sora looked up, wiping his eyes,

"_Sorry Kairi," _there was still laughter in his voice as he held his stomach, "_I couldn't resist._" Kairi rolled her eyes and watched Sora hop up as the attendant leaned over the bed, shuffling the sheets,

"Looks like it's gone now, Kairi." She smiled up at him and nodded,

"Okay, thanks Demyx." He grinned, his eyes a sparkling crystal blue in the sunlight,

"Sure, let me know if it comes back." He turned and said over his shoulder as he walked out, "By the way, your sister is stopping by later. I'll bring you breakfast." A new, genuine smile came to Kairi's lips,

"Naminè?" Demyx looked back over his shoulder,

"Yup!" Kairi grinned wider and settled down on the bed, Sora scooted up next to her.

"_Bet you Riku would kill to be here._" She laughed, the door was still open and she added quietly,

"Did you talk to him after I went to bed?" Sora nodded,

"_Yeah. He really likes her; I think he wishes she could see him." _ Kairi smiled and looked out the window. Through the grating the sky was a beautiful deep blue, clear of clouds and the sun had only risen a few hours ago.

"Could she ever, though?" Sora shook his head,

"_Not unless she's like you, or she manages to get to our world. But I don't see how that could happen, all the pathways are shut. It's a miracle we can even get here." _Kairi blinked, looked at Sora and asked,

"Well…Wait, how _do_ you get here?" Sora laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head.

"_It's kind of risky, in order for Riku and I to show up here we have to 'go to sleep'. It's artificial, but it's like….Okay,"_ He stood up and snapped his fingers, _"It's like if you have a flashlight and you turn it on, and it gives you light. If you turn it off, or 'put it to sleep',"_ He made appropriate quotation marks in the air, "_the way Riku and I do, then the flashlight itself is turned off, but the light still shows."_ He stood back, tapped his chin, _"Does that help?" _

Kairi nodded, "So…Somewhere on your world, you guys are sleeping?" Sora nodded,

"_Yeah. I use the light because that's what my Keyblade is based around, you remember the Keyblade, right?"_ Kairi nodded. Sora and Riku had once tried to explain the concept to her, the Keyblade, unlocking people's hearts and the word's hearts and all of these other things that made her head hurt. Heartless, Nobodies, Ansem; it was strange to think that all of this was happening on other worlds, planets, when the people on her world hadn't ever known, or had a trace of it.

Until now.

"Okay, and Riku's is based on the Dark?" Sora nodded eagerly,

"_You get it?" _Kairi smiled,

"Yeah….But…What about Ansem?" Sora shrugged,

"_It's hard to explain, but basically he does the same things we do, only when he comes here he makes a door for the Heartless to come through too, like they follow his trail to here. Ansem only uses Darkness." _Again, Kairi nodded and opened her mouth to say something when Demyx scampered back into the room carrying a metal tray with a mini carton of milk, orange juice, a plastic bowl and spoon and a little box of Cheerios. He handed it to Kairi,

"Eat up, you've got a busy day ahead of you!" Kairi nodded, remembering with a sinking heart and shrinking appetite that she and Sora may have eluded _one_ Ansem that night, but today she had a hole other Ansem to deal with. As Demyx wandered out, shutting the door with him, Kairi asked as she tore open the cereal box,

"Was Riku really mad before?" Sora nodded, Kairi handed him the remaining half box of cereal and he grinned, sitting down on the floor,

"_Yeah. Like I said, he really likes Naminè, that and he's worried you'll be stuck here forever."_ Kairi snorted,

"I won't be. Don't worry, I'll find a way out. Even if I have to crawl through a river of crap, I'll get out." Sora looked up at her with raised eyebrows,

"_Huh?" _Kairi tilted her head to the side and popped a Cheerio into her mouth,

"_Shawshank Redemption._" Sora blinked, "It's a movie." He nodded, Kairi grinned and did her best attempt at a deeper voice and said, "_Andy Duphrane, who crawled through a river of shit and came out clean on the other side."_ Sora laughed, most of the Cheerios in his mouth sprayed the floor and Kairi smacked him upside the back of the head,

"_Ow!"_ She grinned,

"Payback."

----

About an hour later, the doors to the institution were open to family members and close friends. Kairi had wandered down the hall to the lobby, where most of the patients bumbled around. There was a TV pressed up against the far wall, four different entrances made a sort of intersection for the room, a huge orange couch sat in the center, in front of the TV. There was a dainty old coffee table in front of that, a few little tables thrown about the room and a bookshelf on one of the opposite walls.

Kairi sat curled up on the side of the huge couch; Sora leaned against the arm and looked to the clock above the TV.

"_When's she getting here?" _ Kairi shrugged, looked around and saw no one near,

"A little while, doors just opened." Sora nodded and moved around the couch, sitting next to Kairi. She glanced down at where he sat; wondering if there would be a depression in the couch next to her to anyone who couldn't see him.

"_Is there anyway we could get Riku to be able to stay there?"_ Sora asked, Kairi shook her head,

"I really doubt it, no shadows unless….well, unless they let her come back to my room with me, then I can close the blinds. Then again, closing them would mean no light for you. You can go tell him if you want, though, I'm sure he'd be happy just to hear she's okay."

Sora snorted and said, _"He already knows she okay, remember? He's been checking up on her."_

Kairi smiled, "Right."

"Ahem." Kairi and Sora jumped, the redhead turned halfway in her seat and gave Demyx a weak smile.

"Hehe…Thinking out loud, sorry." He shook his head, rolled his eyes,

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." He motioned for Kairi to get up, "Your sister's here, I brought her to your room." Kairi grinned,

"Yes!" she jumped up and took off down the hall, Sora struggling to keep up as he tried not to run through the various patients who had streamed out of their own rooms. To most of the patients though, the _very _far gone ones, they not only felt a cold breeze blow past them but heard a far away voice cry to Kairi,

"_Wait up!" _

Throwing open the door to her room, Kairi bounded in and tackled the pale, flaxen haired girl onto her bed. Naminè wrapped her arms tightly around Kairi in return, their laughter bringing a few nurses to walk past the door purposely. Sora shimmied in between Demyx and the door as Demyx shut it with a warm smile.

"_I'm going to get Riku, okay?" _He knew she couldn't respond, but she nodded as she and Naminè pulled each other back up. Kairi glanced back at the door to the bathroom, which was just open slightly and got up, pushed the door open and reached in and made as though she meant to grab her hairbrush. Now at least Riku would have a little space, seeing as how the light in there was off. She jumped back onto the bed and combed her hair down.

Naminè said, "So how's life here?" Kairi rolled her eyes,

"Horrible. They _still_ think I'm insane." Naminè looked away, grabbed the sketchbook next to her and said while looking at her knees,

"I'm sorry Kairi. I wish you could come home…Mom and Dad miss you so much. _I _miss you so much." Kairi put the brush down and wrapped her arms around her sister's shoulders,

"I miss you too, Naminè. Tell Mom and Dad I love them, okay? I'm trying to get them to say I'm not…you know." There was a small silence, in the brief span of time they were quiet, Kairi glanced behind herself and saw Sora leaning against the doorway to the bathroom, Riku stood inside it, his hand on the door frame. He smiled, Kairi smiled back.

Naminè said, "I made you a picture." Kairi pulled back,

"Really?" Naminè nodded, pulled back the cover on her sketchbook and as she flipped through the pictures she asked,

"Kairi?"

"Yeah?"

Naminè stopped, smoothed down an already perfectly flat picture, "When…Before Mom and Dad took you here, before they heard you talking to…" she shook her head, flipped to the next page and held the book to her chest, keeping it hidden, "Before you were here, how did…How did it start?" Kairi tilted her head,

"What?" Naminè bit her lip much the same way Kairi did,

"I believed you, when you said those things about shadows and light. I know you, you weren't lying." She rested her chin on the metal spirals of the sketchbook, "Did…Did it feel like you were being watched, at first?" Kairi blinked, sat back and contemplated how to answer.

About a year ago when she had first gotten into all of this and four months before she had been admitted by her parents into this hell hole, Kairi _had _felt often and at random times during the day that, yes, she was being watched. _Stalked_ actually, was the term she remembered gripping, because half the time when she felt that way this surreal terror overtook her. She stopped going out, instead wandering to her sister's art studio in the attic (they were, after all, the Mayor's daughters and just as Naminè had an art studio, the basement was dedicated to Kairi's dancing).

Soon, though, that feeling changed, from being stalked to being under surveillance, and a week later the voices (Sora and Riku, in specific) surfaced from the air, and then their images. And then the Heartless came.

Her parents had admitted her after a particular night when she "woke up" screaming, the room was completely dark and though she saw Riku and Sora fighting as best as they could, with Sora flickering and fading, there were yellow eyes everywhere. Her bed sheets were covered in her blood, one of the Heartless had climbed onto her bed and…Well, there was the reason for all of the scars on her hands.

Kairi nodded, "Yeah." Naminè looked out to the window; there were tears in her eyes,

"Are…Are they here now?" Kairi held her breath,

"Yes." Naminè looked back at Kairi, Kairi saw her eyes move briefly from her to the space behind her. Riku stood up straighter.

Naminè set the sketchbook down on the bed and Kairi brought a hand to her mouth, similar to how her psychiatrist had the night before.

It was colored pencil, sketched roughly and drawn as though the image would leave her sight. It was the far wall in Naminè's art studio, shaded in brown and gray, the circular window in the center showed the moon covered by cotton ball clouds and the floor was blended yellow and brown. Next to the window was a figure in black, one leg crossed over the other and just out of reach of the moonlight, his arm holding him up as he leaned against the wall and green eyes looked at the dark horizon. Silver hair tumbled down his shoulders, Kairi heard Sora in the background,

"_Oh my God…"_

Kairi raised her eyes to Naminè's and smiled, "Riku." Naminè seemed to relax a little,

"I saw him last night." Kairi tilted her head,

"It must've been early, but…I guess that's why he was late." She glanced back at the doorway; Riku was trying and failing to hide his smile. Sora was grinning,

"_Hey, Naminè! Can you hear me?"_ Naminè reached down and ripped the paper out of the sketchbook, Kairi took it gingerly and Sora sat back, _"Huh…Guess not."_ Riku shifted,

"_That's something to ask The King about."_ Sora nodded, Naminè looked up,

"What?" Kairi froze,

"I didn't say anything." Sora looked from Naminè to Riku,

"_Riku, say something again."_

Riku scratched the back of his head, _"Naminè?"_ Naminè sat up straight, tilted her head at Kairi,

"What?" Kairi smiled sheepishly, sat back,

"Um…Nami, that's R-" the door to Kairi's room swung open, Demyx marched in dramatically,

"Time's up, girls, sorry." Naminè nodded, reached over and hugged Kairi tight,

"I'll come back when I can. I love you, Kairi." Kairi hugged her back even tighter,

"I love you too, Naminè." When they pulled back Demyx nodded and as Naminè turned back and waved, then started down the hallway he said,

"Ansem wants to see you, now." Kairi nodded, stood up but smartly left the picture behind.

"_I'm going with her again, Riku, you should go check on Naminè when she gets home. See if she can still hear you."_ Riku nodded and in a flash of shadow was gone. Sora trailed behind Kairi all the way to Ansem's "interrogation" room.

------

"Please, Kairi, sit." Kairi nodded, already feeling as though she should bolt out of the room as she pulled out the chair and sat down. She looked up as she scooted forward. In the harsh light, and for some reason today more than most days, the circles under Ansem's eyes seemed darker, deeper. He must've been there the whole night; Kairi set her hands on the table, wanting to make this visit faster than the rest.

"H-Hi…" Ansem looked up from the papers spread across the table, he gave her a gentle smile and she nearly fainted. He was acting different, out of character- he wasn't hostile like usual. She glanced at the papers and saw little notes scribbled at the top of each sheet.

"Kairi, do you remember what you told me last visit?" Kairi nodded, "Why don't you continue, then?" Kairi bit her lip,

"But…But you don't believe me, so why should I?" she didn't look up, Ansem let out a tired sigh,

"Please, Kairi, continue. I'm interested, and I've decided that perhaps medication isn't the best way for you to find recovery."

"_Thank God." _Kairi stifled a smile,

"O…Okay." She took a breath through her nose, let out a long gust of air and said, "I…I saw one of the shadows again. The bad ones." Ansem looked up, he had been resting his head in his hand and he raised his eyebrows,

"Bad?" Kairi nodded, still biting her lip,

"Remember? The shadows and….And the two boys?" In honesty, Ansem had been up all night reviewing that tape, memorizing the words and the new voice it held. He knew.

"Yes, I remember." He sat up a little, put his arm across his papers, "Did they hurt you?"

Kairi shook her head, "The-The boys would never…They protect me."

"_Don't tell him Ansem's name, okay? He might not believe it." _Kairi nodded and Ansem reached across the table,

"Are they here now?" Kairi nodded,

"S-Sora is." Ansem's eyes widened, "He…He wanted to come with me today. He was here last time, too." He knew. He knew.

"Yes, of course." He sat back, "Go on….These bad shadows, what do they look like?" Kairi shrugged,

"Well…they differ, I guess. S-Some of the weaker ones look like overgrown ants, and…and the really strong ones are scarier. They're always black though, and….and have yellow eyes." Ansem scribbled another note on a new piece of paper,

"Yellow eyes?" she nodded,

"Yeah, but the don't look like human eyes they're just…orbs, kind of. Like circles." He nodded, then stopped his writing and tilted his head up, though his eyes stayed on the paper. He shuffled out a clean sheet, grabbed a pencil from his pocket and set them in front of her.

"Draw one for me." Kairi blinked,

"Um…" He shook his head,

"Go on, it's not an art class." She nodded; Sora leaned over her shoulder as she grabbed the pencil and started to draw. A circle for the head, squiggly lines as antennae, Sora laughed,

"_That's not a Heartless!" _she rolled her eyes, "_Erase the third eye, Kairi."_ Kairi blushed slightly and rapidly erased her little mistake. A moment later and the image was done, and it actually did resemble a Shadow, for the most part. _"Much better."_ Sora leaned against the table and she pushed the image to Ansem,

"Like that…Sort of, the small ones do, anyway."

Sora shook his head, _"How come Naminè's such a great artist and you can't draw a stick figure right?"_ Kairi rolled her eyes and shot him a glare, Ansem was engrossed in the picture for the most part, until the lights started to flicker. He sat up, looking up towards the fluorescent lights.

"One moment, Kairi." He got up, scooping all of his papers into a now overstuffed folder, and stuck his head out the door, "Nurse, what's going on?" The nurse that had escorted Kairi to the room the previous day was talking to Ansem now, saying something about a storm and generators. A few minutes later, he held the door for Kairi and ushered her out.

"We'll continue later, I may schedule another visit tomorrow but…" he shook his head, "Scratch that, I'm taking the day off. I'll see you in a day from now." Kairi nodded as he handed her off to the nurse.

------

Naminè sat in her art studio, a large wooden room she had cleaned out and had decorated the walls with taped up images. Canvas boards and easels scattered around the floor, some held pictures of Kairi, others of hearts and flowers. At the moment, she was seated on a wooden stool with a palette of colors in her hand, her thumb through the little hole in the corner of the cardboard. Her paintbrush flew across the white canvas.

Riku stood where he had been in the picture she had given to Kairi, one arm propping him against the wall, the other at his side.

When he had gotten to Naminè's house he had arrived before her and had waited up in the attic for her. She hadn't come up at first, and he managed to get to her bedroom, where she had curled up on the bed and cried herself to sleep. She was scared, and he couldn't blame her.

Naminè had run up to the attic a little while later, she woke up with a start and he saw the fear in her eyes. Now she was here, her brush flying across the canvas board and swatches of paint falling on the floor, on her dress, smudging her skin. Pulling himself from the wall, Riku stepped around the light from the window carefully, seeing as how the storm clouds had blocked out the sun and Naminè had yet to turn on the lights.

Now standing next to her, he managed to make out the face in the canvas.

"_Naminè…"_ she ignored him if she heard him.

In the picture; tan skin, orange eyes. Darkness around him. Sora's pale body, though with much less detail than the others, in the corner and Kairi crying as Ansem shoved Riku against the wall.

And all together Riku understood why it was that Naminè could see him, Ansem and not Sora.

* * *

_Rawr. ^^ Dundundunnnnnnn XD I'll update maybe around Friday or Saturday, hopefully, latest by Sunday. :D_

_Leave a review on your way out, please! And thank you to all of my faithful reviewers and readers! :DD  
_


	6. Heart

_Howdy guys! ^^ _

_I'm so tired! I woke up wayyyy early today and went to bed late last night...and I don't know why! D: Either way, I have nothing to do so it seems like a nice time to update, hm? I must warn you though, I proofread parts of this, but if I missed anything PLEASE let me know, and be specific. I really like this chapter a lot, I think it's kind of short and it goes fast, but I'll try and update sooner, if I can. Oh, and some small, miniscule itty bitty fluffiness at the end. Ye be warned._

_Enjoy! :D (On a side note, this chapter is dedicated to my lovely friend Guardian Soul, please check out her work if you get the chance- Happy ((early!)) Birthday, honey!!!) 3  
_

**_

* * *

Oathkeeper or Oblivion_**

------

"_So Naminè can see you and Ansem, but not me?" _Sora tilted his head to the side as he asked, a finger coming to his chin thoughtfully, "_That's strange."_

Kairi sat on the edge of her bed, her fingers curled into the fabric of her white tank top. She bit her lip and looked up when Riku said, "_Sora, remember the story The King told us? That myth?" _Sora looked up from his spot on the floor. He sat Indian style in the center of a pool of moonlight, the moon itself was still high in the sky.

"_You don't think…"_ Riku crossed his arms and leaned against the door to Kairi's room, his eyes hard and jaw set,

"_Kairi,"_ Kairi looked up at him, "_A long time ago, The King told Sora and I this story. It's supposed to be a fairytale, a myth, but I don't think it is anymore."_

Sora jumped up from his spot on the floor, his eyes were wide and bright, _"Riku, you're right!" _Riku nodded, Kairi tilted her head and looked from Sora to Riku.

"What's going on?"

Riku sighed, ran a hand through his hair, _"Kairi, you can see Sora and I because you have a pure heart. Light sees through anything, you know that, right?" _Kairi nodded, _"That's why you can see Sora and I both, because Light can break through the Darkness and shadows without destroying it completely. Darkness can do the same thing, only sometimes it doesn't._

_The old story The King told us was that there was a girl with a pure heart like yourself. There were six, actually, and none of them had any Darkness in their hearts. The Darkness they were supposed to have had to go somewhere, and the myth is that that's how the Heartless were made. Now, we know the real story why Heartless were made, but it's a fairytale. Do you understand?"_ Kairi tilted her head to the side,

"So…You think Naminè's a Heartless?" Sora grinned,

"_No, Kairi, you're like the six girls, no Darkness. It had to go somewhere, right?"_ Kairi's eyes lit up,

"Naminè has my Darkness?" Sora nodded,

"_Naminè's heart is strong like yours, and since that Darkness is still a part of you, she can see us too…Or, Riku and Ansem at least." _

Riku nodded, went over to the bed next to Kairi, _"I think she can see Heartless too, it would make sense with the picture she made." _

Kairi sighed, leaned back and laid down, her fingers drumming against her stomach as she said, "I hope they don't put her in here too."

--------

Sitting in her art studio on the floor, Naminè's eyes were wide as she scooted back into the column of light made by the moon. She glowed ethereal in the light, her skin pale and shining. She wrapped her arms around her knees and hugged them to her chest. The painting she had been working on since waking up from her nap lay on the floor face up, supported by the wooden frame around the back of it. She could still see the three large diagonal tears in the canvas.

All around her were yellow eyes.

She bit her lip as the shadows advanced and huddled herself in the moonlight. In front of her, the man from her painting stood tall, a smirk on his face,

"_So _you're _her sister."_

Naminè looked up at him from beneath blond hair and as Ansem pulled out his sword and held it to the light, Naminè said the only name she could think of that would save her, "_Riku_…."

--------

Sora leaned back against the window, arms behind his head and one leg crossed over the other.

"_I wonder why nothing's happened tonight…"_ He glanced out the window, shrugged.

Kairi sighed and turned over in her bed, the sheets tangled around her and her hair sticking out on one side. "_I _wonder why I can't go to sleep." She moaned and rolled over again, then sat up, her hand over her heart. Her fingertips grazed her shirt and she said quietly, "Something feels wrong. Really wrong."

Riku glanced up from his spot on the floor and asked, "_You all right?" _

Kairi shook her head, "No…No…Something is…."

"_Kairi!" _Kairi looked up at Sora for a moment, confused and annoyed for being interrupted. Her misty blue eyes were clear for a moment, locked on his, before she felt the pain. Her face twisted to a silent scream and she collapsed on herself, bending forward and letting out a choked, scared cry.

"W-What?" she crossed her arms over herself, looked down at her stomach where her purely white shirt was turning red. Sora ran out of the light, flickering madly at first and finally setting himself straight once he reached her. He put his arm around her shoulders and held her, pulling her into his lap while he tugged the bottom of her shirt up.

Across the length of her stomach was a four inch wide red mark, she nearly screamed as Sora ran his fingers over the edge of it. He looked up at Riku, who had rushed to her side just as quickly,

"_What happened to her?" _Riku shook his head,

"_I…I don't know."_ He sat back for a moment, Kairi had her hands clamped over her mouth and her eyes squeezed shut as tightly as they could be. Riku noticed, as he thought, that where Sora and Kairi's skin met there was a seam of light, as though they were bonded together. A voice ran like a chill up his spine and into his head, _'Riku…'_ He knew that voice. _"Sora, keep an eye on her, I have an idea."_ Sora could only nod as he grabbed Kairi's shirt and pressed down on her stomach with it.

As Riku disappeared into the shadows, Sora glanced around the room and finally saw what he was looking for. Behind him, attached to the little nightstand by Kairi's bed was a call button, similar to the ones in hospitals. He reached over and hammered the button repeatedly, glancing back at Kairi.

"_Dammit…"_ He heard nothing down the hall, and as a last sort of effort, just as the signal was going through to the office, he said to her, "_Kairi, scream."_ She didn't need to be told a second time.

-------

Naminè scooted down the wall, holding her stomach with one had and trying to pull herself up with the other while still staying in the light. Her face was wet with tears, her white dress turning red just as Kairi's shirt had done, the only difference was the huge tear in the fabric.

Ansem raised his sword up to her neck, the tip pressing into the skin just at the base of her throat. She was about to scream, as his orange eyes narrowed, and within the second Naminè opened her mouth Ansem spun around, the tip of the blade skimming Naminè's throat. There was a clang, a grunt, and Ansem stumbled back into the shaft of light Naminè took refuge in. He screamed and she winced, watching his coat and hair start to smolder in the light.

A moment later and he was gone, have run back into the Darkness and gone from the room. She raised her hazy eyes up and met angry green eyes. The Heartless left with Ansem, Naminè relaxed and as she moved she felt the pain in her stomach. Riku reached out to her and as his arm was illuminated in the light, it started to smoke too. Naminè curled back up, Riku shook his head,

"_I protected you, remember?" _Naminè nodded, the adrenaline in her body plummeted and she leaned back, defeated. She raised a shaking hand to his and he pulled her up, catching her when her legs failed her.

"_Come on, we'll have to throw out that dress, I can help you get better." _Naminè nodded, blushing and feeling too hot and too cold at the same time. She rested her head on his shoulder and asked,

"Who was that?"

"_Ansem. I saw you picture of him before, so I know you know who he is."_ Naminè nodded again, her eyes started to slip shut, _"Don't go to sleep, I'm going to need help finding things."_ She mumbled something under her breath, heard a door close and when she opened her eyes again, Riku was setting her down on her bed. She looked up at him and muttered something; Riku leaned in, "_What was that?"_

"You heard me." She said, only a little louder. Her parents were both fast asleep in the next room and aside from the gentle whir every now and then from the central air, the house was quiet.

Riku smiled a little, "_Of course I did."_

* * *

_I kind of left you hangin' there with the end, I like cliffies like this. ^^ Again, I think this chapter was short, but that might be because I wrote the entire thing in one day. XD Please leave a review on your way out, comments and crit appreciated! Thanks for reading! _

_I shall update.....hmmm....Monday? Si, Monday. Have a great weekend!  
_


	7. Joke

_Howdy ^_^ _

_Sorry it took me so long to upload today, this chapter took a few hours, I wasn't exactly sure as to what was really going to happen in this chapter, but I knew the basic idea. I just had to fill in everything, and it was a little tedious. Either way, I'm really happy with this chapter, though the one thing I would change is that this chapter focuses on Riku a lot, and I was hoping I could make this chapter more about Sora, but it just wouldn't work. Riku was fit for this chapter, basically, and it's kind of semi-fluffy in some parts, very little (if anything, the SoraKairi relationship will take off before the RikuNamine one will.) so nothing too bad, just a little mushy here or there, I think. _

_Again, I really like this chapter, enjoy!  
_

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Oathkeeper or Oblivion_**

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It was morning; Naminè was lying in her bed, one arm draped over her stomach and the other at her side. The shades were drawn shut over her windows, her head lolled from side to side and she let out a small little whimper, her eyes squinting shut. She felt a sort of numbing coldness on her shoulder and looked to her side, she wrinkled her nose,

"R-Riku?"

He nodded, pressed a finger to his lips and shifted, leaning a little closer to her. He was kneeling beside her bed, his hair covered his eyes but Naminè could see the pain on his face. _"Shh, I'm going to be leaving for a little while, but I'll come back, all right?" _

Naminè's eyes grew wide; she shook her head, "But what if-" Riku held his hand up, and it was then that she noticed how he flickered. The shadows in the room were too bright for him, it seemed, but he smiled a little,

"_The Heartless can't get you in this Light; Ansem can only use Darkness, not shadow. Stay here, don't move. It's early; I'll be back in a little while."_ She could only nod, he smiled a little more and she watched his shadows, which in the light looked like static, swallow him.

Naminè looked around the room, her eyes straying over every detail she could find. Her bed was pressed against the same wall that held the door to her room, on the wall across from her, her dresser and a vanity mirror were set, a coat rack was in the right corner and on the wall next to that was her closet. The wall that was, in a way, behind Naminè, held most of her windows. Two large, full length windows flanked the glass door that led to the balcony outside.

Sunlight still streamed in through the drapes, though it was colored a light blue. Her drapes were dark blue and mostly there for decoration, she hated pulling them down.

Naminè let herself relax into the bed, though she felt suddenly that it was all too hot to be under so many blankets, and closed her eyes. She hoped Riku would be back soon.

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Kairi woke up a little after her sister, her eyes fluttering open to the sight of Sora leaning over her, his hair more messy than usual and his eyes as bright a blue as always. She supposed then she knew what the words, "The eyes are a window to the soul" meant, because she could swear she saw his emotions swimming through them, as if his eyes were the water they appeared to be.

"_Kairi?" _She moaned, blinked her eyes again, Sora said, _"We're alone, okay? But the door is open, you're in the infirmary."_

Kairi reached up and held her palms flat against her forehead, wincing as they came back sticky with sweat. "What happened?"

Sora took one of her hands in his, she felt relief with the coldness that flooded through her and she managed a weak smile, _"Riku came back, he left because he said he heard Naminè calling him. He said Ansem attacked her, and he hurt her the same way you're hurt. Actually,_" Sora scratched the back of his head, _"You're hurt the same way _Naminè_ is, see, you're hurt because she is."_

Kairi furrowed her brow; there was a mess of muddy thoughts in her head but what Sora said brought her back a little, "Naminè's hurt?"

Sora nodded, _"But Riku got rid of Ansem, and he said he helped her as much as he could. She's in bed now, Riku went back to talk to The King."_

Kairi yawned, ran a hand through her hair, "Why?"

"_Because, there are rules, Kairi. We can't heal you unless we get permission, sometimes…sometimes it can really mess up the order of your world….Like…"_ He sat back a moment, then grinned and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the edge of the bed, _"Like, say you were in a car accident…and you get hurt real bad. You're dying, even. Riku and I have the power to heal you, but we can't unless we have permission, because if we _did_ heal you when you were dying and saved you, then we could mess up the natural order on your world. If it's your time to go and The King says we can't do anything, we'd have to let you go. But,"_ he held up a finger, "_If The King says we _can_ then we can- And you'll be healed completely."_

Kairi smiled a little, but the smile faltered, "If…If I'm in the hospital, how could you heal me then? Won't they know something's up?"

Sora shrugged, "I…I don't know."

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Ansem sat back in his chair, his couch, actually, and leaned his head back against the pillows. It was early, too early for him to be up on a day off, and he had barely gotten sleep the night before.

He grabbed the remote to the T.V. and clicked it on, flipping through channels with little interest. A cup of coffee stood on the little table in front of him, completely forgotten. Ansem threw the remote down on the couch, grumbling and settling on the news.

The folder that contained Kairi's record as his patient was on the coffee table, too, and he could swear it was mocking him. He shook his head, stood up and stared at it, curious if he should forget the day off and go in or stay home, and end up working on Kairi's files anyway.

He was about to settle for staying home when his phone rang. He wandered into the kitchen, snatching the plastic white phone out of it's base before actually looking at the caller ID screen. He hardly had to, it seemed work took over his life these days…Not that he minded.

"_Doctor Ansem?"_…Sometimes.

"Yes?" he cleared his throat and leaned back on the counter, fingers drumming on the surface. "Please keep in mind this is my day off. This better be important."

The nurse on the other end, clearly flustered, responded with, "Your patient, Kairi…um…" he heard papers fluttering in the background, a little crackle here or there, and shook his head,

"Yes, Kairi is my patient." He didn't need to hear the last name; there weren't many girls with her name. "Is something wrong?" he felt his heart both leap at the thought of going in to work on her case, and fall at the idea of going back to work again, on one of his first days off in a few months.

The nurse let out a loud sigh and said, "Well, we aren't sure as to how it happened, but at around midnight last night we received an emergency signal from her room. We've checked the room and there's no possible way she could've hurt herself, nothing sharp, no knives taken from dinner trays or anything of that sort, but…We've found a gash, about four inches long, across her stomach. She's in the infirmary at the moment and-"

Ansem cut her off, "I'll be there soon."

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"How did this happen?" The King sat in his throne, leaning forward with interest and curiosity, and the beginning of worry in his voice.

Riku stood in front of him, just at the base of the little set of stairs leading up to the throne. He was as he had appeared to Naminè, though completely solid now. His hair covered his face and there were a few little droplets of dried blood on his arms, something he hadn't noticed yet. He shook his head, "It was Ansem, he attacked her….Do you remember that story you told Sora and I? The one about the Princesses of Heart?" The King nodded, "Was…Was that really just a myth?"

The King grinned, jumped down from his seat and walked to the side of the chair, leaning down and pressing a button that went unseen. He hopped down and walked past Riku. He waved him forward, "Come on, I wanna show ya something, but ya better stand back." Riku followed him, curious, and stopped when The King stopped. There was a rumbling from behind them and he turned around and watched with raised eyebrows as the entire platform the throne sat upon moved to the right, sliding easily.

The King started towards it, Riku trailing behind him. The King said, "I was wondering when you guys were gonna ask about that old story again." They were at the edge of the square shaped hole in the ground were the platform had been, Mickey led him down the stairs, hopping down the steps eagerly. "You see, I couldn't tell ya about Kairi being one of them because I wanted you guys to figure it out by yourselves."

Riku tilted his head to the side, "You knew?" The King nodded and Riku looked up, his eyes traveling over the strange "branch" like things that covered the walls, entwined like a protective barrier around the room. In the center of the room was a large white orb, twice at tall as Riku himself, and he stood there for a moment, transfixed.

In the center of the white orb were little ringlets of light, all pulsing and dancing around each other. He smiled a little; Mickey grabbed his hand and tugged him in the right direction.

In the back of the room, behind the orb, was a row of doors. Each was tall, huge, even, and in the same style as the last with slight differences. The first was thick, looked to be made of pure metal with sweeping, curved features at its top. The second was much the same, only wooden. The third was white, soft rose-colored pink details inlaid to the door, a few blue spirals here and there.

Mickey stood back, "These doors are special." He swept his arm out, then pointed to the white one at the end, "But that's the one we're going through."

Riku glanced down at The King and asked, "What's behind it?"

Mickey grinned, "You'll see." He ran over to it, grabbing the handle with both hands and tugging. A moment later Riku went over to help, smiling a little as he grabbed the other handle and pulled. Even with the two of them tugging on it, the door opened slowly, light squeezing through the cracks like a hand in welcome.

When the two stood back, the doors were open almost fully and they stood for a moment, a little out of breath but smiling. The light pulsated and grew around them, and for a moment all they saw was white.

Riku blinked and held up his arm, waiting for the light to die down.

When he opened his eyes again, slowly letting his arm return to his side, he was surprised, to say the least, that there was no longer any real light except for a strange, ethereal, almost spot-light like whiteness in the air. He was standing on a huge circular platform with The King beside him; there were no stairs and nothing around them with the exception of the Darkness that seemed to be closing in on them.

Riku looked down at his feet, at the platform, more specifically, and tilted his head. It was made of stained glass, and he could just make out the picture that it created. A red heart in the center, seven smaller circles around the heart. He looked to The King, Mickey held a finger to his lips and then pointed to one of the circles closest to them.

Slowly, fading and growing brighter and stronger, more _there_, was a girl. She was tall, pretty, very fair skin and pitch black hair.

"This is the Chamber of The Princesses of Heart." Mickey nodded to Snow White, she smiled, "That's Snow White," a girl with blond hair appeared next to her; she was wearing a long blue ballroom gown, "And Cinderella." Mickey moved to the girl that was appearing next to Cinderella. "Alice, Jasmine, Belle," he waited patiently for the next princess to become clear, "Aurora," he walked to the one clear circle left, Riku went with him, feeling strange under the eyes of the girls. He noticed as he walked past each one that the circles they stood on had their likeness made in the same stained glass as the platform.

"And Kairi's the last." He didn't need to ask it because he already knew. A moment later, she appeared- though not in what he expected. She was wearing a pink dress, smiling at him and waving, he shook his head, "Why are you showing me this?"

Mickey turned to him, "Riku, every Princess of Heart has a pure heart, Kairi included. The thing is, each Princess has a dark half, another self that goes unknown. Kairi's lucky that hers is her sister; the others have never met their own. The part of the myth where the Heartless were created by the _Princesses _hearts is fake, but the Heartless _are _created from the Darkness in other people's hearts."

Riku scratched his nose, and then crossed his arms, "You never told us why Sora and I were supposed to watch over Kairi…I can only assume…This is it?"

Mickey nodded, "I'm tryin' to find a way to get Kairi and Naminè here, to Disney. We've never known of one of the Princesses' dark halves before, and it would make it easier if they were here for you to protect."

"Is that even possible?" Riku asked, Mickey shrugged,

"Don't know until we try, right?" Riku smiled a little,

"I need to go heal Naminè, Your Majesty, but I'll be back. I have to spend tonight with her, but I'll come back during the day." Mickey nodded, turned with Riku to leave as the Princesses' images started to fade. As they walked back out the door, Riku glanced back at Kairi. She was the last one fading.

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As Riku was slipping back into sleep to visit Kairi and Naminè's world, Naminè was struggling to stay awake. She wanted to be, so she could see Riku again (and be sure she wasn't dreaming when she did). The sun had gotten only a little higher in the sky since he had left, but it was shining full blast today and she wasn't sure if he'd be okay. She wasn't sure how it worked exactly, but she knew the shadows had something to do with it.

"_Naminè?" _She snapped her eyes open and looked up at Riku, his image was fading and flickering, but he managed to sit down on the side of the bed without much trouble. He looked pained.

"Riku?" she kept her voice quiet, he could hear she sounded out of breath "If…If you need shade, you can take some thumbtacks and pin up a few towels over the windows.

He smiled, "_Good idea."_ He got up and, taking slow steps much like Sora when he had tried to walk in the shadows. He went over to her dresser, snatched a few thumbtacks up and then went to her hamper, grabbing a few still somewhat damp towels. A few minutes later, the towels were pinned up and the room was considerably darker.

He was clearer now, too, as he walked over to Naminè's bed and sat down beside her again. He put his hand on her stomach, being as gentle as he could, and said quietly, "_I got permission to heal you, so it won't hurt anymore, all right?"_ Her eyes fluttered, the pain in her stomach was stretching throughout her body and she could hardly mumble a response,

"…Okay…" He spread his fingers over her stomach; one hand came up to cradle her neck and head, his fingers in her hair. Her eyes opened just enough for him to see the surprise that surfaced there. From his fingertips spread a strange sort of darklight, dim and beautiful, it wrapped itself around her tiny waist, fumbling on the fabric of her shirt and sliding underneath the folds of makeshift gauze Riku had placed over her. She felt a sense of calm wash over her, a warmth of sorts, and as her eyes fluttered shut in blissful sleep she last saw Riku smiling as he reached under her shirt and pulled out the bloody cloth. "Thank you…"

As Riku got up and tossed the fake bandages in her little waste bin by her dresser, he grabbed a pen and piece of note paper off her desk, jotted something down and folded it. He tucked it into her partially closed hand and smiled as he said, "_I have to go take care of Kairi now." _

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Riku seemed to get there at the most opportune time possible; Sora was sitting at Kairi's bedside like he had been doing a few minutes before to Naminè.

"_Sora."_ Sora looked up, the lights were on and Riku flickered madly, but he still managed to say, "_The King said you can heal her."_ Before fading out completely, on Disney he was startled awake as though being thrown from a nightmare.

Sora turned back to Kairi, hearing voices down the hall, and put his hand to her stomach. Just as he started to feel for the light inside of himself, the part of it that could heal her, the door to her room flew open. Sora jumped back, ripping his hand away from Kairi. She winced, her eyes following him as he stumbled back so none of the nurses piling in would walk "through" him.

Kairi's slightly drug-hazed eyes looked up at Ansem; she saw the concern that furrowed his brow and the little twinge of annoyance that hid in his eyes.

"Hiiii…." Ansem raised his eyebrows at her, turned back to one of the nurses,

"Exactly what is she on? She looks high, not sedated." He shook his head as one of the nurses started to respond, pulling down the bed sheets, one of the nurses that was on the opposite side of the bed started to unravel the bandages around Kairi's waist. Kairi looked down at the bandages with little interest, but as the red splotches on them grew darker as the nurse drew closer to her actual skin, Kairi found herself just as shocked as the other nurses.

Her skin, fair and virtually unmarred with the exception of a four inch scar and the stitches that were supposed to hold it shut so it could heal, was perfectly fine. The blue-black medical thread glistened in the light, she heard Sora in the background,

"_Oh! Riku must've healed Naminè, that's why it's gone!" _

As Ansem stood back for a moment, the room silent, Kairi went into a fit of giggles and brought her hands to her mouth. Her eyes met Ansem's and he could swear she was laughing not at the fact of what had seemed to happen, but as if she was saying '_Haha! Joke's on YOU!'_. He looked to the head nurse, anger in his voice, "Is this a _joke?_"

Kairi continued to laugh, her giggles growing into real laughter, Ansem rolled his eyes, "Do you realize if her parents find out she's on pain killers without an actual injury we could be sued for getting her inadvertently addicted to pain killers?" He threw his hands up, "Get her off the medicine, for heaven's sake," Sora was laughing a little now too, at Ansem's reaction, "Get those stitches out of her and unless she starts begging for Vikodin, or whatever the hell you have her on, her parents will hear nothing of this!" He stopped at the door, glared back at the nurses, "_NOW."_

As the nurses started scattered, frantic and working on Ansem's requests, Kairi plucked at the end of the string on her stomach, a huge grin on her face.

"Hehe, joke's on _you_, Ansem."

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_:D My favorite ending so far. ^^ Please, leave a review on your way out! Comment and crit is appreciated. :) _

_I'll update probably...Friday? Yeah, Friday, I have to work on the next chapter for Light Up the Darkness, a little side project of mine you can find on my profile page. I'm re-vamping an old story, basically. _

_See ya Friday! _

_~Peace XD  
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	8. Oathkeeper

_:D _

_I love this chapter, and I think it's shorter than I promised but OMG you guys are going to love it. I introduced more characters to make up for the shortness. :P They're some of my favorites, too, so I hope ya like it! ^~^_

_Enjoy the new chapter!_

_**Oathkeeper Or Oblivion**_

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It was later that same day that Kairi and Naminè had been healed, eight at night, to be exact. Naminè was sleeping soundly at home, exhausted from the night before, and though Kairi was still rather dizzy from her accidental high earlier that day, she felt all right. She couldn't lie, though, she was tired too, and it bothered her that the nurses had been ordered by her psychiatrist to keep her in the lobby for "arts N crafts" night, as they so blatantly misspelled it, so they could search her room for whatever she had used to "cut herself".

The nurses in the infirmary had actually wanted her to stay later, to be in her room "safe" so they could run a few tests and maybe see why she had healed so quickly. There was definitely evidence that she _had_ had a gash on her stomach before, the little holes from the stitches remained lining her new scar ever so nicely. (Kairi had noted that if she put her fingertips to the far edges of her scar and pulled up a little, it looked scarily like a smiley face. Sora had both laughed and been grossed out at that.)

Ansem, Kairi's doctor, had told them though to get her out of there. He had pointed out that they had no real way to test her for her apparent (and fake) ability to heal incredibly fast- what were they going to do, cut her and hope she healed at a faster rate than someone else?

Kairi had almost begged them to let her stay in her room; she just wanted to sleep for a little while, but the nurses had insisted she stay out while they searched her room. Now, she was half asleep and slumped in the couch, the fluorescent lights giving her one of the worst headaches she'd ever felt and Sora standing next to her, rubbing her back.

Against the east wall to the lobby was a long, rickety brown table. There were safety scissors, glue sticks, sparkles and sequins all in little plastic bins. A few stacks of construction paper, all in rainbow order, sat at the very edge while markers, colored pencils and crayons were scattered across the table.

Kairi had walked over to the table before and (after some rather undeniable insisting on Demyx's part) grabbed some yellow construction paper, a brown marker and safety scissors. She'd been cutting out a little misshapen star-like _thing_ for about an hour now, and she sighed and dropped the scissors onto the arm of the couch as she picked up the brown marker. More to herself than anyone else, she said, "This is boring."

Sora nodded, still rubbing the spot between her shoulders and making her back go numb from the cold. "_They can't keep you here all night, can they?"_ Kairi sighed again and shook her head while rubbing her eye with the back of her hand holding the brown marker. She wrinkled her nose as the tip of the marker smudged against her cheek, Sora smiled, "_I'll get it." _He licked his thumb and rubbed off the little smudge, Kairi blushed and muttered,

"Th-Thanks."

Across the room, Kairi's psychiatrist narrowed his eyes, and said under his breath, "It disappeared by itself…" He shook his head as one of the nurses by him craned her head forward,

"What was that, Doctor?" He shook his head again, walked over to Kairi.

Sora nudged her shoulder, yawning as he did so and watched Ansem approach Kairi. "_Heads up, Kairi." _

Kairi looked up, blinking her tired eyes and asking as she stifled a yawn, "Can I go to sleep now?"

Ansem sighed, took the seat next to her and glanced around the lobby. He noted that the pyromaniac a few doors down from Kairi's room was sitting at one of the tables nearer to the hall, his head down and his hectic red hair sticking out everywhere. Whatever he was writing was being written in a bright fire engine red marker, and Ansem was sure he spotted a few snippets of paper tucked into the pockets of Axel's pants. He would have to remember to tell the nurses.

Speaking of nurses- Ansem turned around again and saw a few of the nurses leaning against the wall; Demyx, and Yuffie were two he could actually remember the names of. Talking to them was one of Ansem's colleagues, Leon; he had recently been transferred from another mental institute and was still getting to know the place. Across from him, standing by the table with the arts and crafts setup were two other nurses, both new, Cloud and Tifa.

A good amount of people covering only three or four actual patients, though he supposed with Axel in the room and Marluxia, a newer patient who had gotten in on a plea of insanity and had been tried for cleaving two people who had trespassed on his lawn (and stepped on his precious flowers), the number was necessary.

"Well, Kairi," Ansem cleared his throat, "We couldn't find anything you could use to hurt yourself in your room."

Kairi cut him off, "Duh. I've never cut myself before- I know you _think_ have but I haven't, I wouldn't. I just want to go home." She colored in a few little brown spikes at the top of the star.

Ansem shook his head, blowing past her comment because he knew the truth but needed to make the nurses think he didn't. "We're continuing the search for another hour or two, and then we'll let you back in. I would find you a spare room but we're rather packed at the moment, and I can't risk you sharing a room with someone else if you're a danger to yourself." Kairi bit her lip out of anger and to hold herself back from saying something stupid and clutched the brown marker tighter.

"Then get back to work, I'm tired." Her voice came out surprisingly light; Sora moved his hand to her shoulder and said,

"_It'll be okay. I'll tell you stories about Riku and I when we were younger." _Kairi smiled a little at that and as Ansem got up she said in a whisper,

"Will he come back later?" Ansem half turned, raising an eyebrow,

"What was that?" Kairi shook her head,

"Talking to myself, I'm crazy, remember?" Ansem scoffed and walked back towards the team of nurses he had been traveling with. Sora grinned,

"_Nice save, Kairi."_ She rolled her eyes at him, _"So…What are you making?" _She smiled,

"It's a paopu fruit," she said in another quiet whisper, "They're supposed to…It's a stupid legend." She grinned a little, "It's a surprise for you." She blushed a little as she said this; Sora leaned in and tried to see around her hands,

"_For me?"_

She nodded, "Yes, now stop that." A minute later and she felt a sudden cold spot on her cheek, she jumped and Sora laughed, "Cut it out!" she hissed, Sora smirked, opened his mouth to say something and stopped as the lights flickered. He shrugged it off, as much of the staff did, and said,

"_What's the legend?" _

Kairi blushed again, "It's….Paopu fruits are supposed to have these magical powers that if two people share one and they care for each other, then they'll stay a part of each other's lives, no matter what happens between them." Kairi kept her head down, but if she had looked up she would've seen the smile on Sora's face, and the roses in his cheeks.

"_O-oh…."_ He was reaching over to try and move her hand away so he could see it again, Sora being curious as usual, when it went dark. The sudden darkness shocked him, and he woke up with a start on Disney and, fearing the worst and unsure if it was a blackout or something worse, ran to find Riku.

Kairi sat in the darkness, silent and holding her breath. The talking had stopped and a moment later one of the nurses, Demyx, specifically, said, "Aren't we supposed to have generators?" Kairi bit her lip. There were, and she realized suddenly that the slight flickering of the lights before had been the generators kicking in.

Leon, the only doctor in the room and the one with the most authority at the moment said, "Everyone relax, I'm sure it's nothing. Nurses," Kairi smiled as she realized that most of the nurses in the room were men, "Let's just…Get the patients back to their rooms." He cleared his throats, "There are four patients in the room, stay where you are."

Kairi felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped, Demyx's voice relaxed her a little, "It's just me. Come on, I know where your room is from here, I think." Kairi nodded, realized he couldn't see it and said,

"Okay…" she set her things down but held tight to the project for Sora. She stood up shakily and as her eyes adjusted to the darkness said, "Should we wait for Ansem to get back?" She could almost hear Demyx thinking as the other nurses and patients bustled around the all but pitch black room. She glanced at the walls and silently thanked God for the windows there, where long pillars of moonlight were stretching across the floor.

"Um…Maybe…" The entire room seemed to fall silent again all in one instant, as if it was synchronized, Kairi stopped moving and Demyx held his breath, the staff in the room halted the other patients and all was quiet, as if they sensed the impending danger. There was a long, hollow shriek from down the hall. The hall where Kairi's room was, to be exact, and the shriek sounded like a wail of agony than terror. It wasn't a siren, Kairi knew this to be certain, and she found herself suddenly wishing with a desperation she never knew that Sora was back there rubbing her back with those small circular movements of his. She would give anything, then, to be bored again.

The room stayed silent, Kairi found she couldn't let out a sigh of relief as both Sora and Riku appeared- Sora near one of the windows and Riku closer to her, his Keyblade was out and ready just as Sora's was.

Again, though this time sounding closer rather than farther off like Kairi had hoped, was the wail. It started low and grew louder, like whatever was making it was walking closer. Her mind came up with horrible images of what it might be, and she found she wasn't the only one to nearly faint when, from the shadows and into the light of the windows, came a figure. One of the nurses from Ansem's little team stood with her back arched painfully, her arms away from her sides but not drawn up. Her wrists were turned up and her fingers were claw-like and rigid, like the claws of a Heartless, and her head was drawn back sharply. Kairi could see clearly Ansem, who was hiding like a coward in the dark, with his fingers curled into the nurse's hair and tendrils of darkness snaking down from her dark hair to lie like curls on her face. They twisted and writhed on her skin in the light, burning, and Kairi wondered if everyone else could see the smoke from them.

The nurse took a rigid step forward and as the light fell on Ansem's forearm he hissed and yanked her back. The female nurses in the room screamed, Demyx was suddenly leaning against Kairi and when she looked up, her eyes having adjusted to the dark, found he had a hand over his mouth.

There was another shriek, though this time it wasn't drawn out and hollow like the other nurse's but loud and awake. There was a curse, a thud and Kairi heard the table with the arts and crafts crash to the ground. She saw the nurse under Ansem's control staring at her with wide, fearful eyes as her head was yanked back farther and, as though everything was synchronized, all hell broke loose.

The female nurses (and a few of the males, too) started screaming, running blindly through the room. Kairi caught sight of a mane of pinkish colored hair diving in and out of the lights from the windows and thought it must be Marluxia trying to escape. She heard Axel scream in pain and felt Demyx go rigid with fear and his hand whipped her in the back of the head as he started screaming, scratching at his shoulders and stumbling away from her. Blood dribbled down his chest and back, a Heartless Kairi had never seen before was grabbing hold of his shoulders with birdlike talons and was beating wings fiercely, creating a wind unlike any ever felt before as it lifted him off the ground.

Kairi jumped back and bumped into the couch, Riku grabbed her shoulder and she screamed, whipping around. He dragged her back as a Shadow lurched at her and yelled over the shrieks and cries and crashes, _"Go in the Light!" _The urgency in his voice got her moving and she was forced to dive into a shaft of light a few feet away from Sora as she felt Shadows scratching at her heels. She looked up and found he had ventured out of the light, Keyblade held high and a look of fury on his usually kind face. Kairi looked down and found her ankle was bleeding, three small scratches now puffy and angry stood out in the light.

"_Sora, look out!" _Riku's voice, she knew it instantly, and she found herself in a panic as Ansem lashed out with his sword, knocking Sora back and sending him crashing into the metal grating covering the long window. He ricocheted off the window and fell on his stomach to the floor, coughing and letting out a little moan as Ansem stepped casually around the light until he was close to the side where Sora's head was resting. Kairi shot a look back at Riku and saw him desperately hacking at the Heartless in his path, _"SORA!"_ Ansem raised the sword high and the smirk on his face (___)_ _infuriated_ her and she _ran_—

She jumped, rocketing over Sora and screaming with rage as, somehow, she made contact with Ansem _solid contact_ and the two of them barreled over and landed on the floor, Ansem letting out a loud "oof" as the breath was knocked from him and Riku slid on his knees into the light, not caring about the burn marks. He glanced over as Kairi rolled off of Ansem and skittered back into the light, heaving in breath and her eyes wide as Ansem picked himself up and yelled,

"_Insolent brat!" _Riku put his hand to Sora's back, feeling something crinkling under his hand as he did so but not caring because he had to be _fast_ and healed Sora, stood up with his skin feeling like it was on fire and shoved Ansem back with a powerful hit.

Kairi crawled over to Sora, blinking rapidly at the sight of her little paopu charm on his back, now looking rather realistic and thick, not at all like paper. Sora started to get up, shaking a little as he reached around himself and grabbed the paopu charm which Kairi saw was no longer paper but perhaps seemed to be made of the shells she had been trying to make it appear to be made out of (though it was impossible to do because all she had had was a brown marker). She jumped a little as light intertwined itself around the top part of one of the shells, the one she had drawn Sora's face in, and a metallic glint dangled off it.

Sora looked up at her with a wicked kind of grin, raised his eyebrows suggestively and clipped the newly made keychain onto his Keyblade.

Kairi found herself laughing now as he jumped up and started to hack away at Ansem with Riku, all because of the look on his face.

The Heartless were steadily driven back after that, the Keyblade Sora had now was different, much different, and beautiful, in Kairi's eyes. Silvery white and yellow and blue and just…Beautiful, really. It made him stronger, too, she thought because he seemed to move faster and the Heartless went down with less hits. As the moon rose higher in the sky and the chaos moved around her, Kairi sat in the light and smiled.

_:D Ain't I a stinker? XD _

_CLIFFY BABY. XDDD I don't know why I'm in such a good mood, but I like it. I'll explain everything that happened here with the charm and all that NEXT chapter, which will be up Thursday. Comments and crit appreciated, so leave a review on your way out please! _


	9. Hidden

_Hiyo ^^ _

_It seems I may have lost a few reviewers, but that's okay. Hopefully, they'll come back. :D Even if they don't, at least the ones that are still here will enjoy the new chapter! _

_I'm sorry it's short, I'm pressed for time and I don't want to give too much information on this one, I'm holding out on you guys until next chapter, which will be up....Wednesday. ^^_

_Enjoy!!  
_

**_

* * *

Oathkeeper or Oblivion_**

---------

"So…So how did this happen?" Kairi sat on her bed, the lights having returned just after the fight was over, she could see the little charm she cradled so delicately in her hands clearly. Sora and Riku were exhausted, but they were staying with her for the rest of the night until morning out of fear that Ansem would return for her.

Riku shook his head and crossed his arms; he was leaning against the door to Kairi's room. Outside the room, they could hear people moving and scurrying around. The infirmary was jam packed that night now; both nurses and doctors had been hurt, as well as a few patients. Marluxia had almost escaped but had been halted by what he had called "an enormous-fucking-thing" that Kairi and her two friends knew meant that a Heartless had blocked his path, and he had probably seen a shadow of it.

"_We aren't sure."_ Riku said, he raised his head and looked out the window.

Sora said, "_We're going to ask The King later, he'll figure it out._" Kairi nodded, ran her fingers over the shells that made up the little trinket and sighed.

"I'm exhausted."

Riku snorted and Sora said, "_Join the club."_

Kairi smiled a little and walked over to the light switch. "I'm turning out the lights now." Sora hopped back into a window of light and Kairi hit the switch. The room was submerged in shadows and Kairi looked around for a minute before she went back to her bed, crawled under the covers and let out a little sigh, "Goodnight, guys…Thanks for everything tonight."

Riku stayed quiet, Sora said, _"You're welcome…Kairi."_

A few minutes later and Kairi was snoring, not loud but enough so that Sora had to cover his mouth to keep from laughing. Riku rolled his eyes, "_Sora," _he kept his voice down so he wouldn't wake Kairi, "_Naminé's trying to call me, I think. I'll try and come back later, okay?" _

Sora nodded and waved him off, "_Go on, go on."_

------

Naminé sat on the edge of her bed, her lower lip turning a shade of red as she chewed on it. She stood up, smoothed out her dress and went to the windows, pinning up the towels again so when Riku came in it would be completely dark for him. She sighed, turned around and jumped as a column of shadows darker than the ones on the walls sprang up. A moment passed, and a pale, tired looking figure stumbled out, moving towards Naminé's bed instead of towards Naminé herself.

She let out a little sigh of relief and took careful steps towards him; he was holding his face with one hand and leaning rather heavily on the other, and his breathing was a little ragged. He looked up when she sat down next to him, a little closer than intended, and smiled.

"_Hey."_

She gave him a weak smile back, "H-Hi…"

"_Everything okay over here?"_ She nodded and said,

"I just…I wanted to thank you for saving me the other day. I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't come by."

Riku grinned and shook his head, _"Don't mention it." _After a moment of silence he said, "_I heard you calling for me._" Naminé blushed, looked down and said,

"I just thought…You're the one I've been seeing. I thought if Kairi trusts you, I should too." He smiled at that,

"_You should."_ He scratched his nose and asked, _"What are you doing up so late? It's almost three."_

Naminé shrugged, "I slept most of the day. I got up at eight, I was…I had a nightmare, I guess….My parents are out of town right now, so they didn't care if I slept the day and…." She looked away again, "How did you heal me like that?"

"_It's magic,"_ he ran a hand through his hair, "_That's really all I can say. It's just a power Sora and I have."_ Naminé looked up,

"Sora?"

"_My friend, Kairi knows him…There's a lot I have to tell you, huh?"_

--------

Hours later, in the morning, Kairi woke up to a few little surprises. Her first surprise was that it was almost noon and the nurses hadn't come to wake her up like usual, meaning that they were really busy or were trying to find an explanation for all that had happened the night before. She knew damn well that Ansem, her doctor of course, would have a migraine trying to decipher everything that had happened and _still_ call her crazy by the end of the day.

Her second surprise was the added weight she felt on the bed, a slight incline to her left that told her either her sister had come around again (though she doubted visitors would be allowed to come by that day, seeing as how the lobby was a mess when she had been escorted to her room) or that Sora was still there.

She blinked her eyes open, putting her hand up to shield them from the penetrating light, and found her second inkling to be the right one.

"Sora?" she yawned it out, Sora smiled, looking down at her with tired eyes,

"_I didn't wanna leave without saying goodbye."_ Kairi smiled, rubbed her eyes,

"You didn't have to wait up like that…" the door wasn't open so she could speak normally, and she propped herself up, drawing herself closer to Sora. It was accidental, really, but suddenly they both found themselves close enough that if one of them leaned in, their noses would touch.

"_I just…I thought maybe….You'd get mad…"_

Kairi gave a weak half smile, "Why would I?" and then, in a moment that felt so real, more real than that little charm Kairi had made, she closed her eyes and Sora closed his and there was a light pressure on her lips. No cold swept over her like a December wind, but she did feel her heart speed up to a mile a minute and her cheeks grew warm. A moment later and Sora had pulled away, and Kairi opened her eyes.

Sora scratched the back of his head, his cheeks a bright pink and a goofy grin now plastered on his face, _"Hehe…Bye…Kairi…" _ Kairi opened her mouth to tell him to stay, but he was gone in a flash of all-too bright light, and then she was alone.

She groaned and fell back on her pillows, a minute later and she was laughing.

--------

Riku stumbled into the garden on Disney, scratching the back of his head and yawning loudly. He heard a little laugh from behind him and turned around, smiling, "Hey, Mickey."

The King grinned and walked up to Riku, looking up at him with curiosity, "Did you _just_ get up?"

Riku shook his head but gave a somewhat sheepish smile, "Yeah, there was a huge fight at the place Kairi's staying. Ansem brought a hoard of Heartless with him and started attacking everyone." Mickey jumped,

"That's horrible! But we'll find a way to finish Ansem off for good, don't worry- I'm figuring it _all_ out." Riku nodded and was about to try and find some food for his rumbling stomach when he remembered the charm from Kairi.

"Oh, Your Majesty, I have a question for you." The King nodded and Riku said, "Kairi made this little charm-thing for Sora. It was a paper star, it was supposed to be made to look like a Paopu fruit. Apparently there's a legend on Kairi's world that if two people share one, then they'll always be together." The King grinned,

"Aww, she likes him!" Riku smirked,

"Yeah, I know. Sora's pretty into her too…But that's not what I wanted to ask you. See, when Ansem attacked he hurt Sora, and I was having trouble getting to him. Kairi pushed Ansem out of the way so I could heal Sora, but she dropped that little paper charm on Sora's back, and I didn't see it. After I healed Sora the charm….Well, it wasn't paper anymore. It was real, and we don't know how that happened."

The King scratched his chin for a minute, narrowing his eyes. A few brooms with buckets passed by them and Mickey jumped, "Oh! I know!" he grinned, "It's the meaning behind the charm. Kairi couldn't get to a _real_ Paopu fruit so she made one herself, and the meaning behind it made it real. Since Kairi loves Sora, you adding magic to it helped it become real." Riku blinked,

"I…I didn't think that was possible."

The King laughed, "Anything is, some things just take time."

---------

Ansem sat in the chair behind his desk, one hand propping his chin up and the other drumming his desk. He had three hours until his next meeting with Kairi, and he needed a way to get her out of her room for a few minutes.

The night before, when the nurses were searching her room, Ansem had taken a tiny voice recorder, one he used to have with him for sessions at a patient's house, and had tucked it behind Kairi's pillows. She had two on the bed and he was sure to tell the nurses that he had checked there himself, so there was no need to do so again. The tape could run for hours, and he was hoping he had caught _something_ with it.

If only he knew.

Ansem sighed, stood up and started down the hall for Kairi's room but was stopped by a nurse. She held his arm for a moment and said, "Sir, one of the nurses that was injured last night, his name is Demyx, wanted to ask a favor of you. He's in the infirmary, it'll only take a moment." Ansem sighed again and nodded,

"I have time." He walked down the hall with the nurse, somehow knowing that it would relate to Kairi, because it seemed everything these days did.

* * *

_:D_

_I'm sorry if this chapter seemed rushed, I wrote it in like an hour and half, at the most two. Hope you liked it, if there's anything wrong with it like grammatical errors then please let me know, and leave a review on your way out! _

_See ya next time!  
_


	10. Off the Ground

_To be bluntly honest, I had no CLUE as to what was going to happen in this chapter aside from two main things. The ending I was actually unaware of until I wrote it, so I really hope you love it. I was contemplating the events in this chapter, and I can honestly say I'm SO happy with this. _

_I hope you guys like the new chapter, enjoy! _

**_

* * *

Oathkeeper Or Oblivion_**

------

Ansem scoffed his brow furrowing as he threw the paper down onto his desk. The other papers on his desk fluttered in protest as a light wind ruffled them from the force of the throw. He glared down, attempting to burn a hole in the papers with his stare, the headlines on the newspaper blaring and obnoxious.

_**Incidents Occur at Seventh Heaven Mental Hospital **_

Underneath that was a sort of sub title, another caption sandwiched between the title of the article and a black and white picture of the mental hospital itself ; _Staff Freak-Out Over Black- Out? _

He crossed his arms and couldn't help but read the article over for the twentieth time that day, his cheeks flushing with a mixture of anger and embarrassment at the accusations he now faced.

"Seventh Heaven Mental Hospital, a once trusted sanctuary for mental patients around the country

is now under question of it's authority and overall control of it's staff. According to

anonymous eye witnesses at around eight to eight –thirty last night the lights in the entirety of the building

began to flicker, not enough to cause alarm or raise awareness of any issues. A few minutes later and,

as a few patients bumbled around the building for "Arts N Crafts" night, the main generator was switched off.

The identity of whoever shut the generator off remains unknown.

The staff supposedly remained calm, says our eye witnesses and former workers at Seventh Heaven Hospital.

One of the doctors in the area where the main events, which prove to be more than just a simple

prank or publicity stunt, Dr. Squall "Leon" Leonhart, ordered the surrounding nurses

and orderlies to help the patients in the area into their rooms. However, as nurses and the like started

to shift around the room something strange and unexplained happened.

A nurse that had started at the Hospital not two weeks before (and chooses to remain

anonymous) entered the main lobby where the doctors and nurses were herding the patients.

At this point, the information is sketchy. Many of the staff members refuse to talk about the events that night,

however, quite a few have stated that a strange appearance of "creatures" or "shadows" wreaked havoc

on the unsuspecting staff members and patients. This created a diversion for some of the more dangerous patients to

attempt to escape, though the temporary power outage prevented the electronically locked doors from opening. A number

of other nurses and doctors say that the aforementioned anonymous nurse was acting strangely, as in screaming with no

real reason, and after her screaming the chaos really began with those strange "shadows".

A number of the staff was hurt, a few patients included and it's needless to say that the hospital's infirmary

is packed with strange injuries. One nurse claims he was lifted off the ground and thrown into a wall, though when

asked what could have done such a thing, he was unable to say.

There are currently no fatalities or very serious injuries, though the question is burning in the minds of

those who have loved ones at Seventh Heaven Hospital;

What happened that night?

The events last night are also going to reflect on a number of the head doctors at the hospital…."

He pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. Nothing good had come from that day, it had been a wreck from the beginning when he had spilled his coffee on his lap to the "shadows" attacking his employees.

He was sure these were the same "shadows" as Kairi talked of, he had no doubt in his mind even before the night of all the commotion that Kairi was telling the truth. He wondered idly how his little experiment was going, the voice recorder he had left sitting in her room. He glanced up at the clock on the wall, sitting just above his office door. It was a novelty gift from a close friend, a gag gift that he had thought was hilarious; a little picture of a straight jacket in the center and the sleeves of the jacket (belts and loops included) were the clock hands.

He shook his head, tossed the paper in the trash and walked out the door. Demyx, one of the nurses that had been in the lobby when the "attacks" had happened, had called for Kairi because of some urgent message (he was sure Demyx had been lying when he said he had pushed Kairi in all the confusion and wanted to apologize). He had started sputtering when Ansem had pushed for further information, but to be honest he really didn't care what Demyx had to say to Kairi.

As he passed by a nurse he snatched her arm, causing the woman to jump almost clear out of her shoes, and he cracked a smile, "Ma'am, would you mind checking on my patient, Kairi, in the infirmary? I have an appointment with her soon and would like for her to come to my office today. She's visiting another nurse, his name is Demyx." The nurse nodded, smiling a little,

"Yes, sir." He let her go and turned back down the hall. A few quick turns later and Ansem stood in front of Kairi's room, her door was open just slightly and he pushed it open as though something would jump out at him. He poked his head in, looked from left to right and walked to the little nightstand where the voice recorder sat. It had long turned itself off, and he snatched it up, tossing it in his hand as he walked back to his office to charge it.

----

Kairi played with the hem of her shirt as she sat down next to Demyx. The usually perky blond was pale and quiet, circles under his eyes and a tired smile on his face. He moved his fingers a little, twitching them to the right and motioning to her to shut the curtains around the bed, as if it'd block out what he was going to say and keep it a little secret between the two of them.

Kairi sat back down a moment later, tilting her head, "How do you feel?"

He smiled a little again, "Like hell, kid. Listen, there was something I wanted to tell you." Kairi nodded, "Last night….All that crazy stuff that happened…It was real, wasn't it?" Kairi's eyes grew wide, she stayed silent with shock and he went on, "Okay…I saw those new nurses, or whatever they are, Cloud and Tifa, you know the ones that were by the craft table?"

Kairi bit her lip, "Yeah, the blond guy with the spiky hair and the lady next to him?"

Demyx sighed, "When Tifa screamed, I swear I saw her get dragged under that table, like, foot first and the rest of her right after. But the table is only like, two and half feet wide and her foot would've come out the other side if she slipped, and it _didn't_. She was hanging on to the end of the table for dear life, I could see her shadows in the moonlight, and Cloud tried to pull her up and ended up just knocking the table over instead."

Kairi swallowed loudly, "U-Um, well…"

He shook his head, "And then that new patient, Marluxia? He was streaking down past the windows and all of the sudden he came flying back like something smacked him. And me? Kairi," he licked his lips, leaned forward and lowered his voice drastically. He hunched his shoulders and a pained look crossed his face. "I was standing next to you, and all of the sudden I felt _claws_ on my shoulders, I have the marks to prove it. And the next thing I know, I'm flying through the air and I hit the wall. I have marks to prove that too. Kairi, my point is, I was _off the ground._ You can't dream this kind of stuff up. Twenty eight stitches doesn't lie."

Kairi sat back, bit her lip in thought and then said, "I….Demyx, you can't tell _anyone_." Demyx nodded, she lowered her voice as he had done, "Yes, those things were real. I can see them and you can't. Naminè can too. That thing that grabbed you was like a bird made from shadows. I saw it."

Demyx's eyes grew wide. Kairi knew he must have been suspecting that at least it was real, but she doubted he was expecting her to have seen what it was that had hurled him like a Frisbee across the room. (She held back a strange little laugh as she realized with crude humor that if Demyx was the Frisbee, the wall was the dog that caught him.)

A moment later and he opened his mouth to say something, just as the curtain was yanked back and a nurse said gently, "Kairi, Ansem is waiting to see you. He wants to have your next session in his office."

-----------

Ansem slid the little ear buds into his ears, tuning out the rest of the world and its intolerable noise for a few moments until Kairi got there. He had the door open, so she could simply walk in and wouldn't have to wait if he didn't hear the knock.

He held his breath as he hit the rewind button on the voice recorder, then pressed the play button. He shrugged and wound it forward, sighing as still air greeted him and he remembered the ordeal from the night before. He heard a few squeaks and furrowed his brow, hitting stop, rewinding it and then hitting play.

Silence, that gentle crackle in the air like a fire or a stray piece of paper underfoot. And then there was the wail.

That nurse, that stupid, strange, scary as hell nurse that he could _tell_ there was something wrong with. He saw her staggering down the hallway moments before, as if like a puppet on strings, she almost duck walked down the hallway and then moved to silent shuffling. He saw her and he paused, his heart skipping a beat as he thought she might be injured, and then her head lolled to the side and he saw the whites of her eyes, the contrast of shadows against paper white skin and her mouth hanging open. Her tongue tipped up, as though trying to lick her lips, and he realized she was trying to speak as a strange gargling came from her. Most of the nurses stopped then, staring at her too, and he saw her mouth twitch and form the beginnings of the word "Help".

The second wail came in, long and mournful, and then the screaming. So much screaming, the crashing and banging and—

"_Go in the Light!" _an urgent, new voice for Ansem to add to the list. He could only assume it was that other boy Kairi had mentioned, Riku, was it?

"_SORA!" _He jumped in his seat, cringing as he slammed his knee into the side of the desk, and glanced up to make sure the doorway was clear.

There was another voice, so much more familiar and loud, filled with anger and hatred as she screamed. He recognized Kairi's voice, heard a distant thud and then a deep third voice shout,

"_Insolent brat!" _

He couldn't help the grin that came to his face, tired as it was, and he glanced up and jabbed the stop button as he saw the nurse he had spoken to earlier walking Kairi in. Kairi timidly took the seat in front of his desk, the nurse closing the office door on her way out instinctively.

Kairi was alone at this point, Sora had left (after their little…. "kissy-thing" as she called it) and Riku was most likely either with Naminè or back wherever he came from, sleeping in his bed. She was nervous, which she thought odd, because Sora wasn't with her. He had only attended two meetings with her, but she found she had grown used to it and almost reliant on his presence, it soothed her.

Now, she sank into the arm chair that felt much too big for her, crossing her arms over her tummy and rubbing her thumb on the scar there through her shirt fabric. Ansem cleared his throat, raised one eyebrow at the computer screen and mumbled under his breath just loud enough for Kairi to hear,

"Oh, to hell with it." he sighed, opened one of the drawers at the bottom of the desk and pulled out her file. He also pulled out the several disks he had collected from their previous encounters, and laid them on his desk. Kairi sat up a little to try and see was they said, but he was quick to pull one out and slide it into the computer.

A few minutes later and, as the computer loaded the media player, Kairi asked, "Um…Doctor?" He waved her off,

"One moment, Kairi." She felt her chest grow tight suddenly as the pixilated images of her and Ansem sitting across from each other in that Godforsaken room surfaced. Ansem hit the little play button in the corner and it sprang to life, he dragged his mouse across the timeline for the video, getting to the point he had memorized, and let it play.

"_However, what you said yesterday intrigued me. When I asked who had hurt you, you said 'them'. Who were you referring to?" Kairi glanced sideways, -_ She raised an eyebrow and tilted her head in confusion. What could he have to show her?

"_You can tell him."-_ Sora's voice. Crystal clear. Perfect. _His voice_.

Kairi put a hand to her lips and thought she felt her heart stop and drop down her chest. Her eyes grew wide and Ansem looked over at her tiredly, smiling slightly.

"I know, Kairi, I know."

* * *

_Bum bum BUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM. _

_:D?_

_I love it. I love how Demyx's part ended up being too, I played with the idea in my head since last chapter (when he was actually going to tell her, mind you, but like I said I was pressed for time and had to cut it out and put it here) and I'm really happy with how I got him down. I wanted him to be serious rather than goofy, and I hope I got it right. _

_My favorite part to write for this chapter? The news article. Oh yeah, and using Tifa's bar as the name for the mental hospital was SO not planned. It just kind of happened, but I think it's cute. ^_^_

_Hope you enjoyed! Next chapter by Friday, okay? _

_Please leave a review on your way out, comments and crit appreciated!! :D  
_


	11. Paintings

_It's official. I'm in love with the beginning of this chapter. I'm sorry it's short, but I wanted to make it up to you guys for updating late, so I put some romance in this chapter, as I promised a certain reviewer I would, and to do that I felt the chapter needed to be short. I wanted to add even MORE romance, but I felt that it would drag on, and I wasn't so sure on how to get there. _

_I left this chapter with a pretty open ending, I think, and I wanted to keep it as simple as possible so no one would get confused. Also, if there are typos I'm so sorry, I seriously stayed up the entire night and I have no idea why. I haven't slept at all xD Or eaten, for that matter.....Huh...._

_Onwards! Enjoy!  
_

**_

* * *

Oathkeeper or Oblivion_**

-----

Her brush danced across the canvas with such grace he could hardly look away; quick, fluid movements as her eyes strayed and flicked from paint to picture as quickly as her brush did. She dabbed a little gray onto the brush tip and swept down in a slower, more careful manner, biting her bottom lip lightly as she did so. She dabbed a little more gray and a tiny dot of blue and mixed them through another stroke, painting with such intensity that it seemed not even the world crashing down would disturb her.

Riku willed his legs forward, walking as quietly as he could up to the dainty girl standing in front of the huge set of canvas, most of which was black and purple with the exception of the figure in the center. Vivid streaks of purple and blue radiated off of him like sunlight, and he smiled as he couldn't help but whisper, _"Naminé…You're drawing me?"_

"Painting." She corrected gently, "And yes. You inspire me."

He tilted his head to the side at that, "_How?"_

She smiled inwardly, pushed her paintbrush into the mucky black water in her little can she had planted on the stool she usually sat in. "You just do. You're different, you're….unique." He crossed his arms, patiently waiting for her to continue, "You're….You're gentle, but when A-Ansem was here," she faltered on his name but shook her head, "you acted so strongly, like I was the most important thing in the world. And you took care of me, even though we hardly know each other. You asked for nothing in return, and I'm not sure if that's because you know there's hardly anything I can actually give to you or…."

"_Or?"_ he let his arms drop and came around behind her, causing her to stop with her brush hovering in the air. There was another light shade of gray and blue on the end of it, "_What, Naminé?"_

She bit her lip, fumbled for words and said softly, "Or just seeing me is enough that I don't _need _to give anything back." She blushed but gave a small smile as she resumed her painting, stopping again when she felt a coldness seep through the cotton shirt and apron she was wearing, and she looked down to see his arms around her waist.

"_You're right."_ His voice played against her ear, she could hear the smirk in it as she felt warm breath hit her neck. Her heart sped up, he reached with one hand and pressed his fingertips to her chin, tilting her head back as he leaned in and brushed his lips to hers in a feather-light kiss that numbed her lips and warmed her cheeks at the same time. She felt, just as Kairi had earlier that day when she had kissed Sora, a certain type of reality that she couldn't quite place, a weird air that lingered on the edges of a dream world. He brushed his nose to hers, _"I've watched over you for a while now, since I first met Kairi. I've always wanted to talk to you."_

She stayed silent but opened her eyes, as they had slipped shut, and questioned him with them.

"_I never could, though. I guess it just took some time, but over that time….I really think I fell for you, Naminé."_ She blushed, smiled a little and the smile broke out suddenly to an all out grin,

"I….I'm painting you for a reason…You know…" He nodded, kissed her forehead,

"_I know." _

--------

"Why is it only you can see them?"

Kairi bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. Mentally, she called for Sora and wondered if it would work the same way Naminé continually called for Riku at night. She gripped the arms of the chair with white knuckles and looked away, helpless under orange eyes that were only curious, she knew, but still made her feel trapped all the same.

She didn't know what to tell him, but she knew she had to explain something to him. Anything.

He was patient with her, clasping his hands on his desk and leaning in to hear her if she spoke. "May I tell you I am not recording this session?" She looked up but nodded, "In the case that _someone_ happens to come upon it, I could lose my job if anyone found out I may be…."egging you on", so to speak."

"I know….I guess that helps…" She looked away again, her eyes searching, coming up empty and in the end staring back at him as she said, "I'm not sure what I can tell you….They don't trust you, they think….They think you could end up keeping me here my whole life- and they're right. You could if you wanted to, you know."

Ansem snorted, "I highly doubt that, Kairi. Even if I called you mentally unstable your father is the most powerful man in town and could easily find help for you when needed. A few years, give or take, but at this rate that's unnecessary. He's very much pushing for you to 'recover'."

Kairi smiled a little. He _was_ right and that was something she had never thought of. Though her father might not be able to pull her out of the hospital until the doctors were really done with her, he could still make it so she wouldn't have to stay there the rest of her life.

The thought of setting foot in a mall again, in a dance studio- _her_ dance studio at the mansion, made her grin a little more and say, "Their names are Sora and Riku. I'm the only one that can see the both of them because I have a pure heart. Only light, nothing dark."

He raised his eyebrows at that, "Light and dark?"

Kairi nodded, eased her grip on the arms of the chair, "Light is good. Dark is bad."

"And is Dark where those Shadows come from?" he leaned in, clearly interested and his brow furrowing with concentration.

Kairi nodded again, loosened up a tad bit more, "Yes. Sometimes the Shadows are good though. There are two different types. The bad Shadows are called Heartless, and the name 'Shadows' is just the name for their species of Heartless…At least, that's what Riku told me." He nodded, motioned for her to continue. The need for sleep seemed to leave his eyes and he looked alive, awake, "The good Shadows are a mix of Light and Dark. Not bad, but like a happy medium between the two. It's…It's hard to explain, but in a way it's more powerful than either the forces of Light or Dark."

She paused, tapped her lip thoughtfully. _To hell with it…_

"And…Sora, he can project himself here. Not fully, and the same goes for Riku. They…They come here to protect me from the Heartless and the bad Shadows that try to hurt me at night. The Heartless can only get here through the Dark, like….Physical darkness."

Ansem nodded, scribbled down a few notes and held up a hand to stop her, then looked back up after a few moments. "Kairi….How do…Sora and Riku get here, then? Do they need a conduit as well?"

Kairi nodded, relieved he understood as she was unsure that she was explaining it completely right. "Sora uses the Light, it's like a pathway here. He opens a "door"," she used finger quotations, "and steps through the Light to here. He can only walk in the light though, physical light I mean. If not….It's like a faulty satellite antenna in a rainstorm. The clearer the skies are, the easier he can be seen and project himself, the cloudier and rainier it gets, the darker it is, the harder it is for him to be here and he flickers."

Ansem raised his eyebrows, "Flickers? Like a light?" Kairi nodded, "And…What of Riku?"

Kairi smiled, "That's why I explained the two types of Shadows before. He uses the good ones, the actual mix of Light and Dark, to get here. He isn't bad like the Heartless, but Sora said….Sora said he once gave in to the Dark, and it left a mark on him like a scar." Ansem nodded, "But he can still use Light too, just not as well as Sora."

"And why is that?" he asked as he wrote something else down. For a moment the only sound was the sound of his pen streaking across the paper in wide, curly handwriting that was both elegant and messy at the same time.

"Because….Shadows are Light and Darkness mixed together in….um…" she paused again and he looked up with a little smile,

"Equilibrium?" he suggested mildly, amusement clear on his face.

Kairi nodded enthusiastically, showing her personality and being a little less tense as she did so, "Yah, that was the word he used."

He nodded again, leaning into his hand as he wrote, resting his chin in his palm as he said, "Let's take a break from this for a moment. I need time to mull it over, so…Tell me, what do they look like?"

Kairi smiled a little at the thought of Sora's goofy grin, and had to stifle laughter at the memory of that eyebrow-waggling grin he gave her when he had gotten the "Oathkeeper" keychain, as he had named it.

"Well," she started, "Sora….Sora's got really spiky brown hair, kind of like that new guy…Cloud?" He smiled a little and nodded, "He's got really pretty blue eyes, he smiles a lot and usually wears all white sweatpants and shirt…And…And he's about my height."

Ansem nodded, flipped his paper over and scribbled something on the top, "And Riku?"

She shifted a little, "Um….Pale skin, long white-ish silver hair…_way_ taller than me, wears the same outfit as Sora except it's black….oh, and green eyes."

Ansem smiled a little, glanced up at the novelty clock above the door and cursed under his breath. "Excuse me, Kairi. We've been here for a over an hour now. I should let you get back to your room to rest." She nodded, started to stand.

She stopped then, just before he called for the nurse, and said, "Oh, yeah, and the other night…." He stopped and stared at her, anger in his eyes but not directed towards her, "It was the Heartless, and someone else I'll tell you about later. Most of the nurses and doctors and orderlies were attacked by them. Oh, and another thing, go talk to Demyx and ask what happened to him." She turned and showed herself to the door, leaving him rather open mouthed and quiet.

---------

_I kind of like this ending. I thought it would fit, in a way. And I absololutely lovelovelove the beginning to this. It made me "Squee" xDD_

_Reviews are appreciated, and if there are typos then let me know- leave a review on your way out!_

_Have a great weekend!!!  
_


	12. Saw

_:D_

_Sorry it took so long, I made up for it by making this chapter longer, tho, so I hope you like! ^_^ _

_I really like this chapter, but I almost cried when I wrote it, because I didn't want the ending to happen, but it has too. _

_Why? Because I said so. XD  
_

_Enjoy! _

**_

* * *

Oathkeeper Or Oblivion_**

-----

A few hours after his last session with Kairi, Ansem had dulled down his shock enough so that it jolted him only every few minutes, rather than blaring brightly like lights. He took fast steps as he walked, arms clasped behind himself and his head held high because (_No, I am NOT believing in this any longer. No. No. NO.)_ he was going to disprove Kairi. After days of obsessing over her psychological state and the "beings" she had come into contact with, he was suddenly terrified at the idea of that attack the night before being just that- an attack. He was terrified of the idea that he had actually been in danger that night and he was going to prove that such creatures as her "Shadows" did not exist because _they did not exist._

If anything, he needed proof that they _did_, because now he was more than willing to bet that most if not all of the footage he had of their sessions had been tampered with.

'_Yes…that's it. She must have a friend in the hospital, a close relative who's been overlooked. Yes, yes that's it of course.' _

He was lying to himself and he knew it. Deep down, he knew what he truly believed in but, as much as his heart insisted, his head said otherwise and for the time being he just had to ride it out, and have a little time to think.

He turned the hall sharply at the right, finally bringing his hands around to his front to shove open the infirmary doors. He stopped at the circulation desk just briefly to ask the nearest nurse behind the counter what room Demyx was in, and as soon as he found out he took off down the hall.

Moments later, as Demyx settled himself into his pillows and started to drift to sleep, the door floor open and smacked back against the wall. He jumped, screeching a loud, feminine scream that caused one of the nurses to poke her head in a minute or two after Ansem had made his way over to Demyx.

"Demyx," he stood beside the bed, eyes hard, "Tell me what happened to you the other night."

Demyx froze, spared a glance up at him and said, "Um…."

Ansem rolled his eyes and shook his head, then turned around and closed the door to the hall. He returned to the side of the bed and sat down heavily in a chair next to it. He placed his hands on his knees, "Demyx," he said softly, "I'm fairly certain I believe her too."

Demyx let out a strangled little laugh, "Huh?" Ansem stared at him, Demyx let out a tired sigh, "I….Okay. You swear you believe her though? Cause…I mean, you aren't going to put me in here too if you're tricking me?" His crystal blue eyes were opened wide, Ansem shook his head,

"No, I have no grounds to."

Demyx seemed to contemplate this for a moment or two before nodding to himself and saying, "That night- yesterday, I mean- Kairi told me it was thing that looked kind of like a bird. She said it grabbed me with its talons, and that's why I'm so cut up, and that it flew off with me and threw me against the wall."

Ansem sat, waiting for it to click in his mind. "Did you feel it?"

Demyx nodded, "Yeah. It hurt like hell."

Ansem snorted, "I would think so." he paused for a moment, and then said, "Thank you, Demyx." He started to stand; Demyx put a hand up to stop him and winced at the fast movement,

"Wait, wait, wait." Ansem stopped and turned to him,

"Yes?"

"What makes you believe her all of the sudden?"

Ansem smiled just a little and shook his head, "Every session is videotaped. In quite a few sessions of ours, I've heard the voice of a young boy that seems to be talking to Kairi. His name is Sora. The incident last night was recorded as well, audio of course. There are three voices on the recording, all belonging to people Kairi has mentioned as seeing. All a part of the reason why she is here to begin with."

Demyx smiled and leaned back, finally settling down again, "Good. There's more proof then, as if my scars won't be enough." Ansem left then, though Demyx heard the soft chuckle under his breath as he did.

-----

Kairi was sitting on the edge of her bed, fingers twisting around of lock of hair when there was a soft knock on her door. She waited a second, realized whoever was on the other side was expecting a reply and said, "Come in."

She recognized the man in the doorway; she had seen him for the first time the night before. "Your sister called."

Kairi grinned at Cloud, "She's stopping by?"

He nodded, "Soon, get yourself ready." He stepped back into the hall and shut the door; Kairi bounced a silent cheer on the edge of her bed for a second before speeding into her bathroom, intent on taking a shower before her sister showed up.

------

Ansem sat down behind his desk, head in his hands. He had a few thoughts running through his head, the strange and complex kind that mingle together and every so often cross paths and crash into each other, leaving confusion and a slight headache after impact. He was a doctor and a bit of a scientist (of the mind of course, though he had always wanted to try his hand at other things) and the theories in his brain were enough to make him want to slam his head against the door until he lost consciousness.

He rubbed the tiredness from his eyes, picked up his trusty pen and grabbed a yellow notepad. He was going to sort through these theories or thoughts or musings or whatever the hell they were and he was going to _make sense of them dammit._

He sighed, made a little number one on the first blue line on the sheet of clean paper, circled it, and then wrote the date in the top right corner.

One- _The Theory of Light existing in Darkness_

----------

A half hour after Cloud had given Kairi the news of her sister visiting again, she was clean and dressed in the best sweatpants she could find (She laughed at the thought, and then realized it was a little sad, too) and was brushing her hair when there was that same knock on her door.

"Come in." Kairi said in a sing-song kind of voice, she heard the little giggle as Cloud opened the door and Naminè hopped in. He stepped out without a word, though Kairi could swear she saw a little hint of a smile on his lips as Naminè bounded across the room and tackled her into the bed.

Laughing, Naminè crawled off of Kairi and sat to her right, Kairi grinned and wrapped her arms around her sister's neck, "It's good to see you too, Nami."

Naminè nodded, "Yeah." They sat in a comfortable silence for a second before Naminè started to blush, "Kairi…I um, I have to tell you something."

Kairi grinned, "Same." She waved a hand at Naminè, "You first."

Naminè nodded a little reluctantly and took a deep breath, "So…I can see Riku clearly now." Kairi's grin grew twice it's size, Naminè held her hand up, "And…Well, the other day something kind of…happened."

Kairi nodded, "Yeah, same here. You read the paper?"

Naminè blinked rapidly, "Um, no…I took it and used it to cover the floor in the art room so I wouldn't stain it with paint." She scratched her head as Kairi started laughing, "Should I have?"

Still laughing, Kairi said, "Jeez, Nami, you're the only person I know that did _that_ rather than read the paper." Naminè grinned sheepishly, "There was an attack last night, the Heartless. And Ansem. They cut the power _and_ disabled the generator long enough to cause a little chaos for like, an hour or so. A bunch of people got hurt."

Naminè blinked again, shocked, "Really?"

Kairi stifled her laughter, "Uh-huh. That nice nurse-guy, Demyx? He's in the infirmary with…uh…twenty something stitches in his shoulders because this bird-_thing _picked him up and hurled him across the room." Naminè sat back for a second, bringing a finger to her lips in thought, Kairi waited before saying, "So…What did you want to tell me?"

Naminè sighed, "Um…Ansem paid me a visit the other night."

Kairi nodded, "I heard." Naminè looked up questioningly, Kairi shrugged, "Sora and Riku told me. We found out that whatever happens to you happens to me." Kairi pulled up the edge of her shirt to prove this, showing off her little scar.

Naminè gasped, "So…So when Riku healed me, he healed you?" Kairi nodded, though she noticed the way Naminè blushed at each mention of Riku's name.

"Naminè?" So, obviously, "Why do you blush at Riku's name?" she called her on it, like any sister would.

Naminè's cheeks turned pink again, she bit her lip, "Ummmm…." She looked away, Kairi grinned,

"You _like_ him." Naminè chewed her lip, Kairi said, "Just as well, he's pretty into you too."

Naminè blushed further, turning a deep red, "Um…I know."

Kairi sat back, bringing her hands to her mouth. She stifled a little squeal and said through her fingers, "Tell me _everything._"

----------

About a half hour later, after Naminè had gone over the events of that morning twice and Kairi had told her about what happened between her and Sora (they both thought it was one hell of a coincidence that both happened in the same day, and roughly an hour apart) Kairi had taken her sister to the lobby.

They had cleaned the place up rather nicely. The few blood stains that there were had been mopped up, the "Arts N Crafts" table had been returned to it's place in the basement and all objects on it had been collected. Kairi waved with a little smile to Cloud, and as she passed by, Axel too.

The visiting hours for the hospital were longer than that of a real hospital, so Naminè stayed well until the announcement was heard over the intercom system that visitors only had one hour left. It was around eight at night at this time, Naminè could see Kairi was getting a little tired and so she said,

"Maybe I should get going, then."

Kairi shook her head rapidly, eyes growing wide and fearful, "Nuh-uh I'll tell them _you're_ crazy if I have to- _stay._" She smacked the couch firmly and Naminè giggled.

Above them, the fluorescents flickered and Kairi felt a slight twinge of fear. Naminè caught it on her face and in her eyes, "Something wrong?"

Kairi nodded, pursing her lips, "This is how it started last night. Naminè, I think you should go. I don't want you to get hurt if-" out of the corner of her eye she saw Cloud pry himself from the wall and head towards the room with the generator. The other new nurse, Tifa, in tow and flying down the hall going the opposite way was Ansem, her doctor. He looked furious and scared all at the same time, and completely overwhelmed.

For the second time in two days, the lights went out. Kairi grabbed her sister and yanked her close, Naminè letting out a muffled squeak as she was held in a vice grip in Kairi's arms.

'_Where's Sora?'_

'_Where's Riku?'_

Laughter, sharp and almost metallic in the air. The women nurses screamed, the doctors hastily pulled out their newly assigned flashlights and shined them in every way they could manage. The room grew frantic, especially as there was a gasp and a strangled scream. With all of the flashing lights and even the moonlight, they could not see who it was until all of the lights came to rest on a mass of Darkness covering _something_ on the floor, almost like a bubble ready to pop.

More laughter, louder and- _Holy shit what was that?!_- the windows were blocked out. There were no curtains, nothing large enough to cover _all _of the windows at once in one fell swoop like that. Kairi and Naminè heard the screams as flashlights were ripped from their homes, leaving red fingers and scared eyes behind.

Naminè poked her head over the edge of the couch, to where Kairi still stared with wide, glassy maroon eyes. She nearly fainted.

The dark mass on the floor was not a mere bubble to them, as they could see what it truly held. Ansem knelt on top of Axel's struggling form, grinning an insane grin and a fire burning in his eyes as his bloody sword sat discarded beside him. Red spilled over the floor and stained the front of Axel's shirt. He was sweating, scared as his eyes were huge and wide and Naminè tore herself from Kairi just as Kairi herself shot up and they jumped over the back of couch.

Ansem looked up just as both of their fists found their marks, and he fell back with a hiss and an angry yell. Kairi stood back and reached for Axel, but her determination faded when she saw him still struggling, when she saw the dozens of yellow eyes bouncing back and forth on the floor. She saw their claws grasp at Axel, she heard Naminè and herself scream as Shadows latched themselves onto them. She heard Axel take in a breath, ready to scream again, and as Darkness danced and writhed around her in twisted shapes and forms, she saw Ansem actually _reach into _Axel's chest. She saw Axel throw his head back, mouth wide and eyes clamped shut, she saw blood fly into the air like a water spout and she saw, most of all, the glassy pink crystal heart in Ansem's hand when he pulled out. He looked up, grinning still, and Axel's arms fell limp at his sides.

Kairi was screaming along with Naminè, who she _knew_ had seen it too, as a flash of light and shadow erupted from behind Ansem and furious beings she could've swore were angels came out, Keyblades held high.

* * *

_So...Um...Don't hate me? XD I know there are a TON of Axel fans out there, but...Hehe...I got the idea and thought it was perfect, because I had no idea how to end the chapter. _

_Speaking of ending...._

_I don't know when the story will end. It could be soon though, maybe a few chapters, but I have to see. Something else major happens next chapter too, but I have to check into it and make sure everything's right. I think....Uh, maybe five chapters left? But it's not certain, it could change because my imagination tends to take my stories into a lot of wierd twists. So, it's unofficial, but be up to the idea, okay?_

_Okay. _

_Oh, and leave a review on your way out, comments and crit appreciated ~_

_Peace. XD  
_


	13. Smile

_Oy....I'm sorry. This chapter sucks, in my opinion. I have writer's block for this story. :(_

_Either way, I got a pinch of an idea for it so I took it, and this is what came out...._

_Eh....I sowwy!  
_

_**

* * *

Oathkeeper Or Oblivion**_

-----

Kairi sat down on her bed, the one given to her by the hospital, and a small smile graced her lips. She thought back to the night before and glanced at the door. She still had a few minutes, and she picked up her hairbrush and raked it through her hair as she let her memories overtake her.

_She stared at Ansem from the ground, eyes wide and her fingers scratching at the tile as Shadows bounced on her back. She felt their claws itching through the soft cotton of her shirt and she glanced over at Namin__é__, her sister's blue eyes locked onto hers for a split second before they looked up to Ansem together. _

_Ansem turned his eyes to them, glowing hellfire in the darkness, and he squeezed the heart in his hand. Axel's body shuddered and lurched, his arms smacking the ground and his eyes fluttering as though he slept through a nightmare. Ansem squeezed the heart again, a crooked smirk on his lips, Axel twitched again. _

_Behind Ansem Kairi saw movement. It was as though the air pulsated around him, and there was a strange sort of icy wind that came from nowhere (though Kairi new the reason for it) as two oval shaped tears ripped open in the air behind Ansem. _

_Feet first, legs, hips, stomachs, chests and arms and finally they were flying through the air. _

_To Kairi, as Sora flew through the moonlight streams, he had never looked more solid. His normally pale cheeks were rosy, she could see shadows dancing across his face and the light in his eyes. He had his Keyblade drawn back against his shoulder, Oathkeeper, the one Kairi had accidentally "made" for him. There was a jet set of pale white behind him, trailing off his feet and shoulders like little ribbons in the air. _

_To Namin__é__, as Riku flew through the air beside Sora, hair covering his eyes and his lips drawn back in a terrifying snarl he had never seen more solid. All the times she had seen him, even in dreams, he had never appeared as realistic as he did then. She could see the Shadows beneath him raising their claws to him, the needle-point edges dragging on his black sweatpants. She raised her eyebrows at the little streaks of silver and blue streaming behind him, she took a mental snapshot of the color and made a note to try and copy that image later in her studio._

_As though sensing the danger, Ansem turned and at that moment Sora and Riku's feet smashed down on his face, his head rocking back and his grip on the heart loosening. It fell to the floor, shattering like pink glass and little shards of light seeping out of it as the Shadows attacked it, devouring it. _

_Axel's body lurched again, arms repeatedly smacking the floor and a scream tearing from his throat. Kairi dragged her arms out from under herself and covered her head with them._

Everything after that point was just….blurry. She remembered screaming, she remembered hearing Naminé crying and the nurses and orderlies crashing into things. Terrified voices and strange noises, Shadows hissing in her ears and Sora and Riku fighting, Ansem's scream as he disappeared into the Darkness again and the lights came on.

When the lights came on, someone had fixed the generator, the room was silent as they stared at Axel's pale unmoving body. His vacant eyes stared up at the fluorescent lights, it seemed like an eternity before one of the nurses went around to him, shaking fingers gripping his wrist just right as she held her breath.

Once word got out that Axel was dead they had taken him down to the coroner, she wondered if they would find his heart somewhere in there, or if it would be shattered like the pink glassy thing they had seen on the floor.

Sora was sitting on the bed next to her, eyes downcast and his hand on her shoulder.

"_I told Riku we're together…I hope you don't-" _

"That's fine." she finished for him. She smiled a little more. "Axel's death is sad," she turned her head and looked out at the yellow sun, half covered by clouds. "But…."

Sora shook his head, "_I know_." He stared out at the sun too, "_Do you…Do you want me to stay with you? Riku said he's staying with Namin__é__ all day." _

Kairi nodded, "Yeah, and that's okay because we'll just see them later." She turned back to him and grabbed his hand, running her fingers over his incredibly cold skin. "I'm not mad, Sora. At least….at least something good came out of it."

Sora shook his head and wouldn't meet her eyes, "_We…We should've showed up earlier, Kairi. I'm sorry. We just…We were so tired from the other day and…" _His voice trailed off, Kairi smiled a little more,

"I'm not mad." she repeated, he shook his head again and they both turned towards the door at the sound of footsteps. Kairi let her smile fade, but Sora saw she was only hiding it. "Ready?" her voice was a whisper, he nodded and she stood up.

The door opened and Kairi grabbed the small bag of her things, tugged at the hem of her shirt and smiled again, unable to hide it, "Hi…"

---------

Ansem sat behind his desk with his face in his hands. It seemed there were reporters living in the _walls_ now. He had told security a dozen times to let no one but family members in, but somehow they kept getting through.

He looked down at the papers on his desk, the notice from the head of the hospital saying they were shutting down until further notice. He ran his palms down his face and sighed as he grabbed the arms of his chair and hauled himself up. He shuffled the papers together and shoved them into a folder, then stuffed the folder into the cardboard box by his chair.

With the hospital closing down, there was no need to stay in his office there. Before he had accepted the position at the hospital two years ago, he had worked out of his own home. He had a separate rooms designed for patients, monitors and even a secretary when times were rough and he had too many papers to deal with. He had always _liked_ working out of home, it was just that when he was offered this job the pay was quite a bit more than what he had going for him.

He wondered what this would do to his reputation, though in the back of his mind he knew it wouldn't really matter because he had nothing to do with what had happened, it was just that he worked for the hospital that all of these terrible things had happened at. He sighed again and shoved something else into the box, shaking his head.

One thing was for certain, he wanted to try and keep Kairi as a patient, even _if _her parents were taking her home right at that very moment.

-------

About an hour later, Kairi stepped into her house for the first time in a few months. As her father flicked on the lights, a scream of "_Surprise!"_ erupted from the room and she jumped, grinning as her friends from school and dance classes and relatives surrounded her.

* * *

_Thanks for reading guys! I'm sorry if it sucked...If you're still here, please leave a review on your way out! _

_I'll update soon, hopefully. I start school tomorrow so I might slow down a little but I'll try not to. If there is anything you guys wanna see in this story, just let me know. _

_~See ya!  
_


	14. Heartless

_I made this chapter better. MUCH better than the last one- and I have to thank someone at the end of this chapter. I would do it now, but....Well, you'll just wait and see. It would ruin the chapter for you guys. _

_The idea for this was like a slap in the face, mainly because I had writer's block for this and after I got the idea it was one of those "HALLELUJAH" moments. _

_Enjoy!  
_

* * *

She raises her arms above her head, back straight and one leg bent with the other completely still, standing with her toes pressed firmly against the ground. She took a quick sideways glance in the mirrors on the wall and smiled, winking at Sora's faint and tired reflection. He gave her a thumbs up and she laughed, throwing her head to the side as she flicked her ankle and twisted in place, her laughter carrying upstairs to where her parents sat eating lunch.

As Kairi twisted and danced, moving in time to her own rhythm, Sora sat Indian style and grinned.

It had been a while since he'd seen her dance, or since he'd seen her this happy, and as she twirled and jumped and her reflection followed, he looked up towards the five inch tall windows near the ceiling and smiled.

The windows were small but with all the reflections off the mirrors and the soft lights they had installed in the ceiling, the light really wasn't all that bad. It wasn't the best source for him, which would explain why he seemed so pale, but it was pretty good for indoors. Also, it was, technically, the basement and most basements didn't have windows, they were lucky on this one.

Kairi danced through the soft lights for her one-man audience and Sora decided that the smile on her face was brighter than any sort of light could ever be.

-----

Naminé stood in front of her painting, her brush hovering in the air as she furrowed her eyebrows together and chewed her lip in thought. Riku put his hand on her shoulder and stifled a yawn,

"_What's wrong?"_

She shook her head and put her brush down on the stool next to her, then reached to the table beside it and grabbed her pallet, pushing her thumb through the little hole and then tapping her chin with her other hand.

"_Naminé…" _ She turned around, still tapping her chin but her left hip now jutting out as she leaned on one leg.

"Shush, I'm thinking."

Riku raised an eyebrow and shook his head, "_What's so important?"_

Naminé sighed and put the pallet back on the table behind her, then turned back to him. He crossed his arms and she walked up to him, reaching up to grab his face, her palms turning numb as she did so. His eyes widened and she said quietly, "I'm trying to paint your eyes." She leaned in and pressed their noses together, getting up onto her tiptoes as she did.

"_What's so hard?"_

"Well," her voice was hushed, "They're different. They're beautiful, they get kind of darker when you're angry, like a kind of….Jade color." She reached up and smoothed back some of his hair, still staring into his eyes, "But when you're happy, or just okay, they're this…mix of blue and green. Really bright and vibrant. It's…amazing, and I wanted to get it just right."

He blinked, "_And what color are you going to make them, then?"_ She leaned in a little more, brushing her lips to his as he closed his eyes and she closed her own. She ran her fingers along his jaw line when she pulled back, smiling, and when he opened his eyes her smile grew.

"The color I see now."

He smirked, "_I can't see my own eyes, you know."_

She laughed, pulled back and turned to her paint table, "Well you'll just have to wait and see then."

-----

"Hello?" Kairi's father squeezed the phone between his shoulder and his ear, reaching down to his desk to shuffle his papers together.

He heard someone clearing their throat on the other line of the phone and raised an eyebrow, pausing for a second before the person spoke, "Ah, excuse me is this-"

"The Mayor?" he finished with a little smile, he heard nervous laughter on the other end,

"Yes."

Kairi's father nodded as he answered, "Yep."

The person on the other end said, "This is Kairi's doctor from Seventh Heaven." The Mayor paused again, Ansem went on, "I…I am no longer working with the hospital, I resigned. I called you because I've returned to having a private practice, if you would like I can still talk to Kairi…" He cleared his throat again, "We were making progress- and I wouldn't recommend admitting her to another hospital."

Kairi's father set his papers back down on the desk, his fingers resting on top of them as he leaned over, thinking. It wouldn't be that bad of an idea to at least have Kairi _talk_ to the guy. It might make him feel better, considering since Kairi was only let out on the technicality that a patient had been murdered and the hospital was shutting down.

He glanced down at the newspaper on his desk and saw the picture of the deceased patient, the picture next to that of Axel's grieving family members.

He shuddered at the thought that Kairi was in the room when it happened.

"All right. You can see her in a few days, just let me clear up the schedule and I'll give you a call tomorrow."

He heard the relief in Ansem's voice, "Thank you."

--------

By the time Kairi had had enough of her dancing for the day it was almost eight and her mother had just finished making dinner. She heard tiny steps being taken down the stairs and smiled as she wiped the back of her hand over her forehead, breathless.

Naminé poked her head around the doorframe, smiling, "Dinner's ready. Mom made steak and baked potatoes for us."

Kairi laughed and trotted over to her, following her back up the stairs as Sora towed behind her. Quietly, she asked, "Where's Riku?"

Naminé stopped and turned, "Upstairs. Is Sora here?" Kairi nodded, "Good, Riku says he should steal some food for the both of them and meet him up there."

Kairi grinned and Sora rolled his eyes, "_Lazy."_

Naminé turned around and started back up the stairs, leading Kairi into the kitchen where her mother was setting plates down. Her mother brushed back some of her brown hair and smiled at them, "You're father's working late tonight, he'll be home after dinner."

Kairi nodded and sat down, scooting her chair in and watching Sora out of the corner of her eye. He ran over to the kitchen counter and grabbed two plates out of the cabinet. Naminé eyed the floating plates wearily, Kairi smiled a little as her mother started to turn around and Naminé jumped and went over to her, "Mom!" Kairi stifled a laugh, her mother jumped too, "C-Can you shut the window in the living room? I'm kind of cold, I'll finish getting everything done."

Her mother cast Naminé a bewildered look and said, "Uh, sure honey." she walked around the table and out of the room. Naminé sighed and Kairi bit her lip, the ends of her mouth twitching up in a smile as Sora skirted out of the room with two full plates of food.

Naminé finished setting up the table and Kairi grabbed the bowl of mashed potatoes, realizing she hadn't eaten since earlier that morning. Their mother wandered in a minute later after the girls had helped themselves and shook her head as she made herself a plate.

They ate in silence for a few minutes before her mother cleared her throat and put her fork and knife down. The girls looked to her expectantly.

"So," she started, swallowing her food in one big gulp, "Kairi, that doctor of yours….Ansem?"

Both girls went rigid at the name but Kairi managed to ease herself when she remembered who her mother was speaking of, "From the hospital?" her mother nodded, "What about him?" she piled another forkful of food into her mouth,

"He called your father today." Kairi slowed her eating, listening, "He says he left the hospital and has a private practice out of home now. He wants to keep you as a patient, he says he won't have you admitted to another hospital."

The kitchen grew quiet and then Kairi smiled a little, remembering how Ansem had believed her, she knew he truly did because she saw it in his eyes when he told her, the tiredness and pure belief. She nodded, "Sure. He was nice."

----

After dinner Naminé and Kairi cleaned up fast while their mother grabbed her latest book club novel and headed for the backyard. They shoved the dirty plates in the sink and the leftovers in the fridge, then Naminé motioned for Kairi to follow her upstairs.

On the way up Kairi asked, "What's so important?"

Naminé grinned, "A picture I'm working on, I just need some constructive criticism."

Kairi raised her eyebrows as Naminé twisted the doorknob and shoved it open, "From me?"

Her sister smiled and flicked on the lights, laughing a little as she said, "Uh-huh, from _you_, Kairi." She lead Kairi over to the little area she had set up for painting, the canvas propped up on the easel and the little wooden stool now holding various shades of green and blue paint. Her paintbrushes were scattered across the top of the little table she had sitting beside the easel, two old metal cans spattered with paint and filled with dirty water were on the edge of the table.

Sora and Riku were leaning up against the wall in front of Naminé's little set up, their empty plates stacked beside them as they looked out the window at the darkened sky. The moon was bright, almost pure yellow, with flecks of brown here and there.

Sora turned from the window and hurried over to Kairi, "_Tell Naminé' her picture looks great!"_

Kairi relayed the message to Naminé, she smiled, "Thanks, Sora."

Naminé grabbed Kairi's hand and dragged her over to the painting, Riku looked back from the window and waved, "_Hey."_ Sora motioned back towards the window and trotted back to his previous spot.

Kairi and Naminé both turned at the same time, "Hi!" Kairi gave him a little wave and turned back to Naminé, "So what's so-" She stopped mid sentence, eyes falling over the painting Naminé had been working on for days.

On the canvas, Naminé had painted Riku's likeness perfectly. His skin was the perfect shade, his hair hanging in his face; his eyes were that vibrant green Naminé had envisioned earlier, the focal point of the picture.

Kairi put her hand to her mouth but couldn't hide the smile her lips curved in to, "Naminé," she turned to her sister, meeting her gaze, her eyes flicked to the shadows for a second and her smile faded. "Naminé!"

The blond tilted her head and crossed her arms, "Jeez, Kairi, calm down."

Sora and Riku had already summoned their Keyblades and as Sora grabbed Kairi around the waist and yanked her back, two tan arms reached from the thickening shadows behind Naminé. She stumbled back in surprise as they closed around her, Ansem's arms crushing her to his chest. Riku flew past Sora, feet pounding the floor as Ansem laughed and pulled Naminé backwards.

Naminé thrashed her legs, kicking the air and letting out a choked scream as Ansem covered her mouth with his hand. Riku kept running at them even after Ansem pulled backwards one final time, the shadows closing around him and engulfing Naminé's tiny form, her white dress pure against the blackness.

Kairi screamed Naminé's name, Sora kept holding her back as Naminé finally disappeared from sight, her beautiful blue eyes terrified and wide and the last thing any of them saw of her.

Riku skidded to a halt just before slamming into Naminé's art table, breathing heavy and his own eyes wide. Kairi stopped struggling against Sora's grip and sank down to her knees, "Why the _hell_ didn't you save her?!" her voice broke at the end and Sora knelt down next to her and pulled her into his arms. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she buried her face against Sora's shoulder.

Riku turned back to Kairi, panting, and then whipped back around as he heard laughter.

"_Ansem!"_ The Heartless smirked, walking out of the shadows by the window now. The moonlight spilled out before him and he sat smugly beside it.

"_Don't be sad,_" Kairi buried herself against Sora, wrapping her arms tightly around him as Riku stepped up, Keyblade back in his hand,

"_Give her back. __**Now.**_"

Ansem shook his head, "_I have something better. You'll like her, Riku. You all will- I made her especially for you." _ He turned his jack-o-lantern eyes to the right, motioning with his hand.

They looked to the shadows, the soft scuffle of feet on the floor as she moved forward.

Kairi raised her head from Sora's arm and watched as a girl her height walked from the mass of shadows the seemed to be growing from the other side of the room. She wore a simple white dress, much like Naminé's, but her eyes were darker- more like Kairi's. She had pale skin like Naminé too but one thing stood out greatly- her pitch black hair. It was just above her shoulders and dark like the night sky.

"_You can kill her, if you wish."_ Ansem stood from the wall and walked up beside her. She looked enough like a mix between Kairi and Naminé, pretty but… She just wasn't Naminé. She looked up curiously at Ansem, "_But, if I'm not mistaken, your parents would notice Naminé's disappearance." _He smirked and Riku took a few steps forward, drawing back his Keyblade.

"Riku!" Kairi pulled herself from Sora and shook her head, he turned back to her,

"_You can't seriously expect-"_

"I do. How can I explain this to my dad?" she shook her head again, "She'll stay…But only until we get Naminé back." She shot a glare at Ansem, "If you hurt her…"

Sora put his arms around her and Riku finished for her, "_I'll kill you."_

Ansem smirked, "_Her name is Xion. She's a Heartless, by the way, but special."_ He met Riku's eyes, "_I've gotten stronger._" Riku started forward again and Ansem twisted the shadows around himself, laughing as he winked, "_I'll take __**good**__ care of Naminé."_

As the shadows faded and they were left with that fake thing that looked like Naminé, Kairi started to cry again.

* * *

_....So...What do you think?_

_I love it. Seriously, the idea was perfect. Thanks to Inspiration of Imagination for the idea- though she meant it as a joke. :D_

_Please leave a review on your way out! _

_~See ya ;)  
_


	15. Xion

_Hiyo ^_^ Surprised it didn't take so long? XD To be honest, I wrote this chapter up like...the day after I updated XD I just couldn't wait, so I've been editing it for the last few days. I made it long, or, well, I hope I did XD _

_Read the A/N at the bottom of the chapter, there's a special announcement. _

_Enjoy!  
_

**_

* * *

Oathkeeper or Oblivion_**

**---------**

The air was cold.

It was the first thing Naminé noticed when the fog in her head cleared. She didn't know where she was or how she had gotten there, but she _did _know she was freezing. She took in a deep breath and shivered- the white dress she was wearing was thin and definitely not meant to be worn in winter. She pulled her arms up, which were heavy and felt weighed down, and rubbed her palms against her prickling skin. She bent her knees and tucked her legs in, wincing as she moved the stiff muscles.

She could see her breath as she let the air out through her nose, and she shivered again. Her lips were trembling as she looked around the little stone cell she was in and asked softly, "H-Hello?"

She was met with silence, and she shook her head. She instantly regretted the movement as a wave of dizziness washed over her and she moaned, resting her head back against the wall. Flaxen hair fell in her face and she shut her eyes. She could feel the frozen metal of something (_chains?)_ on her wrists, her ankles. She shifted her legs again and heard the chain links tapping against each other.

She couldn't really remember what happened except Kairi screaming for her, a blurred vision of Riku running across the room to her (he didn't get to her, obviously, but she had to give him credit- it wasn't like the room was small or anything). She remembered feeling arms around her and….

She jumped at the sound of Ansem's footsteps down the hall, and she shut her eyes and wished it was just a dream.

Ansem stopped in front of her cell and rapped his knuckles against one of the steel bars, she snapped her eyes open as he tugged on the door.

His eyes stared into hers with malevolence, and she shrank into the corner.

**---------**

Xion stood in front of Kairi, hands clasped behind her back and her eyes downcast. Kairi had her arms crossed and she tapped her foot rapidly on the tile floor of the bathroom, her lips tugging into a frown.

Sora and Riku had left for Disney a few hours after Naminé had been taken and they were sure there was no way to get her back. Kairi's head was still swimming with the idea that they could now travel to the other worlds, and that Ansem had taken her little sister from her and she had no way of knowing if she was okay or not.

She had agreed to keep Xion there for the one reason that if she didn't then she'd have to figure out an excuse as to why Naminé was missing to tell her parents. She took a step towards the strange new Heartless and ran her thin fingers through ink black hair. Xion looked up at her.

"We'll tell my parents that you're wearing a wig, all right?" she met Xion's eyes, so much like her own, and then looked away. "I'd say that you cut and dyed it but that wouldn't make sense since…Well, since I'm getting Naminé back. We'll tell them you're trying something out."

Xion nodded timidly and brought her hands in front of herself. "Should I answer to her name?" Kairi nodded numbly and Xion said, "Why don't you like me? Master Ansem said you would."

Kairi bit her lip in frustration, "Because you aren't my sister. You're a Heartless, Heartless are bad things."

Xion tilted her head, "I don't _feel_ heartless. I feel…Sad."

Kairi shook her head and turned, "Well, pretend to be happy, like Naminé. We're going to show my mother your 'wig' so keep up the disguise." Kairi lead Xion out of the bathroom, flicking off the lights as she did so. She lead Xion down the stairs and through the kitchen to the backyard where her mother was lying back on a lawn chair enjoying a book, one of those little silver owl-clips attached to the top of the page. Kairi was nearly blinded by the tiny book light in all the night sky.

Her mother looked up at the sound of their footsteps and jumped when her eyes landed on Xion, "_Naminé!"_ Xion stepped behind Kairi and peered over her shoulder,

"Yes?"

Kairi shook her head, "It's a wig. We wanted to show it to you." she plastered a fake smile on and pulled Xion out from behind her, "Make sure you tell dad, okay? She just…wanted to try it out before she decided to…you know, actually do it."

Xion nodded, "Y-Yeah I bought it yesterday." she glanced at Kairi, "Right?"

Kairi nodded, "What do you think?"

Her mother dog-eared the page she was on and shut her book, then stood up and circled Xion before smiling, "I like it, honey. I think I prefer your natural color but…Whatever makes you happy." she pulled Xion into a hug and it took her a moment to actually hug back, she cast a curious look at Kairi and the redhead couldn't help the little smile on her face.

When her mother pulled back Kairi said, "See you later mom…" she grabbed Xion's hand and tugged her back to the house, her mother settling back into her chair with her book.

"_Kairi."_ Kairi looked up as she shut the back door behind herself and found Riku standing in the middle of the kitchen. He looked a little uncomfortable, his arms crossed over his chest and his shoulders a little hunched in.

"Yeah?" She walked up to him, just a little closer, and tilted her head, "Where's Sora?"

Xion came up next to Kairi and asked quietly, "Which one is this?"

"_Riku."_ He met her eyes for a moment and Xion smiled a little, he turned back to Kairi, "_Sora's with The King. They're….They're trying to figure out a way to get you to come __to our world so we can get Naminé back."_

Kairi smiled, her eyes shimmering bright violet at the idea of being able to jump from her world to Sora and Riku's- to actually being able to hug (or even kiss) Sora, to really _feel_ it would be-

"_There's just…one thing."_ Kairi stopped her musing and looked up at Riku,

"What?"

Riku scratched the back of his head and said, "_Once you get there…You might not be able to come back." _

Kairi's eyes grew wide and she cast a look behind herself to make sure her mother wasn't on her way back, then she turned back to Riku, "What do you mean?"

He sighed, "_I mean that Naminé probably won't be able to come back, and neither will you. Getting you to us is one thing, we can probably do it by following what Ansem did. Having you go home would be complicated, since….Since Sora and I are never fully here. Xion was only able to get here because of Ansem's power and that she's made of Darkness. There's already Darkness on this world, just in other forms, so getting her here wasn't at all hard for him."_

Xion shook her head, "Am not." she crossed her arms and stamped her foot, Kairi and Riku raised their eyebrows, "I'm….I'm not a Heartless….No matter what you say! Ansem may have made me but I'm different…"

Riku rolled his eyes, "_The only way Ansem could have made you is if he used the Darkness. That's his power, you know that."_

Kairi stepped between the two, "Fighting won't get us anywhere. Riku, if you can get me there then do it, because I'm not leaving Naminé. I love my parents but…Well, you remember that story you told me about the Princesses right?" he nodded, "If Naminé is a part of me then there's no way I can leave her there."

Riku smiled a little, _"I'll tell Sora and The King you're on board then. Just…Make sure it's what you really want. I know you and Naminé are part of each other but there's no turning back." _

Kairi nodded, "I know. I just need to say goodbye." she glanced back out the back door, "When will we leave?"

"_Tonight, if we can. Sora will take you."_ he glanced at Xion, "_What do we do with her?" _

Xion raised her head and stared into Riku's eyes, "I'll take her."

Kairi blinked and turned back, "Huh?"

Xion clasped her hands in front of herself and looked down. "I can use the Darkness like Master Ansem. I'll take her to wherever you need me to."

Kairi nodded, "Okay."

Riku shook his head, "_How do I know you won't take her to Ansem himself?" _

Xion sighed, "I promise. I'm not…I'm not like him. I don't want to hurt people and I don't really have a reason for being here other than the fact that he made me so he could get his hands on Naminé and…" she paused, pearly white teeth biting down on her pale lip.

Riku narrowed his eyes, "_And?"_

She took a deep breath through her nose and let it out all in one gush, "He wants to turn her into a Heartless."

Kairi was silent, eyes taking in the green grass in the yard, dyed silver and blue in the moonlight. She watched her mother's profile outlined in white as she read her book, oblivious to what was going to happen that night- what _could_ happen that night.

"_Kairi."_ Riku was beside her now, Kairi glanced up, "_We'll make sure that doesn't happen." _

She gave a bitter smile, "If she gets turned into a Heartless, what would happen to me?"

"You would cease to exist." Xion stood beside her too now and put a hand on her shoulder, "I don't want Naminé to get turned into a Heartless."

Riku snorted, Kairi sighed, "I know." she looked up at Riku, "For a Heartless, she isn't that bad." Riku rolled his eyes.

"_Say your goodbyes."_ He turned to Xion_, "Meet us in the garden at Disney Castle at midnight. If she isn't there by then, we'll know something is wrong." _Xion nodded, Riku stepped away from Kairi, "_See ya."_

She smiled a little, "Yeah."

Though her heart did skip a beat at the thought of _finally_ being able to really be with her friends, the thought of leaving her home terrified her. It would break her parents' hearts, but it was for Naminé and she knew they would do the same if they were in her position. She couldn't even begin to really fully explain all that had happened to her parents, so she would do the next best thing.

She turned to Xion and looked her over, then shook her head, "Come on, we're going to my room." she grabbed Xion's pale hand and ran to her room, taking the steps two at a time and then flinging Xion into her bedroom. She squeaked and stumbled as Kairi jumped in and flung the door shut.

"What are you doing?" Xion brushed herself off as Kairi yanked open her closet doors, then stepped to the side,

"Find something you like, if you're like Naminé you're the same size as me." She tapped her chin, "There's probably going to be a fight later, so we'll need to be wearing something we can run around in, okay?"

Xion nodded, understanding, and stepped closer to the closet. She rummaged around next to Kairi for a second before pulling out a pair of dark wash jeans and a light blue jacket. "Is this okay?"

Kairi smiled a little, "Yeah. You should try them on first, okay?" Xion nodded and Kairi went back to looking for clothes, finally pulling out a pink shirt and a pair of white sweat pants. She dressed quickly, then glanced up to find Xion twisting around in front of the mirror.

She was dressed in the clothes she had grabbed from Kairi's closet but they didn't seem to fit her, not physically but…she looked uncomfortable, like she didn't fit in to her own skin. Kairi came up next to her, "You okay?"

Xion shook her head, "I…No. Can I wear something else?"

Kairi nodded, "Let me pick, okay?"

Xion sighed and started to undress, "Okay."

As Xion folded her clothes, Kairi went back to the closet and grabbed another pair of sweatpants, these ones black, and a shirt to match it. She handed them over to Xion and immediately after putting them on, she smiled, "Better."

Kairi grinned, "Okay, there's one thing." she went over to her desk and picked up her cell phone.

Before she had been admitted to the hospital she had been seeing Ansem on Saturdays for hour long visits, he would come to the house especially for her (And because her father couldn't afford to have the citizens of the town seeing him drive her to a mental hospital every Saturday). She had his number programmed into her phone really just to keep her parents happy, it was his cell phone rather than the work phone because, he was honest with them when they asked, he answered it more frequently than his work phone.

Kairi searched her address book patiently, glancing at the clock and seeing it was ten o'clock already. She dialed his number and smiled when his confused voice answered the phone,

"Kairi?" he let out a yawn, "Why are you calling? It's past nine."

She smiled a little, "I know." she took in a deep breath, "I don't have long, I needed to tell someone the truth, so I chose you. I can trust you."

"Trust me with _what_ exactly?" At his house, he sat up in his bed and pulled off the blankets, throwing his feet over the side of the bed. His voice was a little groggy and he cleared his throat as he waited for Kairi's reply.

Kairi bit her lip and said softly, "Remember how I told you there were Shadows and Darkness?"

"Yes…"

"Well….There's a really bad one- Shadow, I mean. His name is Ansem."

Ansem laughed, "Oh, is it now?"

She sighed, "I know. It's weird, but…But it's _real_. He…He came by today when Naminé and I were in her art studio and he grabbed her. She isn't here anymore."

"What do you mean?" at his home, Ansem raised an eyebrow and grabbed a pen and paper.

Kairi went on, "He grabbed her. He pulled her into the Shadows and Dark and took her wherever it is that he lives. She's gone." she licked her lips, "But Sora and Riku are going to help me get her back. I'm going there too…With a little help." she glanced at Xion, "There's a catch though."

Ansem cleared his throat again, his heart sank in his chest but he said, "I'm listening."

She took a deep breath and ran a hand through her hair, "Once I go there I might not be able to come back. I'm leaving everything behind, but…Someone deserved the truth. My parents wouldn't understand, I know they wouldn't." she sighed, "So, if I'm reported missing in a few days, don't be surprised. I just went to save my sister. And if the authorities check my phone record and see I called you, just tell them I called because I…I had a breakdown or something, I don't know."

She heard him let out a tired sigh, "They wouldn't possibly believe that."

Kairi smiled, "I know, but you're smart. You'll think of something."

He laughed, "So…This is goodbye, then?"

Kairi nodded as she said, "Yeah. I just thought you deserved the truth."

"Thank you. I suppose…I'll tell them you called me to set up an appointment."

Kairi grinned, "Okay. See ya…"

He stifled a yawn, "Goodbye, Kairi, and good luck." Kairi smiled a little, feeling her eyes growing wet, and shut the phone. She wiped a few tears with the back of her hand and shook her head.

Xion tilted her head to the side, "Why do you cry?"

Kairi glanced up at her, cast a look at the clock and saw it was ten thirty already. "Because I'm sad. It's showing emotion."

Xion walked up to her, wiping away a single tear at the edge of her cheek and looked down at her finger curiously, "This…" she gestured to the tear on her finger, "Is…emotion?"

Kairi shook her head, "Not exactly. It just happens when you get sad, it's proof that you have feelings." Xion looked down at the tear on her hand, then wiped it on her pants leg.

"Oh…" Kairi saw the longing in her eyes and smiled a little in reassurance,

"Xion…thank you. You're helping me get my sister back, so…Maybe there's hope for you." Xion looked up and smiled a little, Kairi sighed, "I just…need to write a letter to my parents." She brushed past Xion and grabbed a pen and a few pieces of computer paper. "We have some time, just keep yourself busy."

--------

Ansem sat on his couch, Kairi's files all around him and a few tears in his eyes at the thought of never seeing her again. He cared for her, how could he not, after taking care of her for so long?

There was a video in his DVD player of the first session he had recorded where Sora's voice had come through. Next to him were a few others, the voice recorder he had put in Kairi's room, a few other notes from her sessions. He would have to hide all of them come morning, but for now he would sit in memory.

He reached over and grabbed his appointment book as a sort of late afterthought and scribbled a fake appointment down for Kairi for a week from then.

He watched her on screen and smiled. He wondered if he would ever see her again.

--------

Naminé was pressed into the corner of her cell- a dark, dank room with rusty bars and a huge lock on the cell door. Ansem stood in the center of the room, orange eyes narrowed as he smirked, "They aren't coming for you, Naminé." he walked closer to her and her feet slid across the floor as she pressed her back further to the cold stone wall. The chains around her clinked noisily.

"Yes they are!"

Ansem shook his head with a laugh, "Doubtful. You'll never see your sister again." he knelt down in front of her and gripped her chin with his hand, "Once you come here, you can never go home. Ever, Naminé. All of your friends," her eyes grew wide, "Your parents, your lovely sister- Gone from your life."

Tears sprang to her eyes, a few toppled over the edge and trailed wet tracks down her pale cheeks, "L-Liar."

Ansem smirked, "Do you see the Guardian behind me?" Naminé flicked her eyes behind him, biting her lip in fear at the sight of it. She had seen it in a nightmare once, she remembered, she had seen it with its arms tight around Riku and Ansem running at him with his sword and…And…

"Y-Yes." her voice was tiny, dry, he laughed,

"I made him- he was a boy that was supposed to be like _Sora _and _Riku," _he spat out the names, "But," he grabbed a fistful of her hair and pulled her closer, "I didn't want him to be. Three key blade masters are more than enough to deal with. I offered him power- Would you like to have that power?"

Naminé's eyes grew wide as she realized what he was saying, she moved to shake her head but found his grip on her tighten, "N-No!" he laughed and let her go, her head banging back against the wall. She whimpered and watched him leave and wondered if she would ever see her sister again.

----------

Kairi grabbed a tissue from the little blue box by her bed as she folded the letter to her parents up. She snatched up the other versions of the letter she had written, the scrap copies and messed up ones, and crumpled them and threw them in the trash bin.

She wiped her eyes and carefully tiptoed into her parents' room, setting it down on the nightstand for her mother or father to find. Her mother's sleeping form shifted under the covers, Kairi went to the side of the bed and kissed the top of her head.

She wiped her eyes furiously and tossed the tissue in the trash, then went back to her room. She shut the door and said in a tired sigh, "I'm ready."

They had a good fifteen minutes before they would need to actually get there but Kairi knew what Riku meant- if they weren't there by midnight then he and Sora would have to assume Xion had taken her to Ansem instead, or that it hadn't worked.

Xion took in a deep breath and nodded, standing up from the bed. She walked over to Kairi and pulled her close as if to hug her, Kairi wrapped her arms around Xion and bit her lip, taking one last look around the room she had grown up in.

And then there was **Darkness**.

----------

_Mom, Dad-_

_I'm sorry. _

_We love you, it wasn't our choice- someone made the decision for us. _

_I** told**__ you they were real. Ansem knows, ask him to see the session videos and show him my letter so he knows you aren't joking around. _

_I might never see you again, neither will Naminé, but you should know we love you, and if we can we'll come back. _

_Love, Kairi._

_P.S.- There's a painting in Naminé's art room of one of them, if you want to know what at least one of them looks like. She saw them too. _

_

* * *

_

_Okay, so, what did you think? :P I had two options here- either make it so Kairi and Namine could jump from one world to the next, OR be difficult about it and...Well...Do THIS. _

_So, naturally, I was difficult. I almost cried making this chapter just because I feel so bad for the girls, leaving their home like that. Anyways..._

_SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: _

_I'm not sure exactly how many more chapters, but no more than three. Probably two left until the story ends. Now, the REAL reason for this announcement (since I could've just told all you lovely readers that in a review reply)-- I have a surprise for you guys. However, you ONLY get it if you do what I say in the last chapter- That and if I break a hundred reviews by the last chapter. _

_Think you guys are up for the challenge? _

_Okay.....GO! _

_:D  
_


	16. Fallen

_*cries* One more chapter left! _

_Enjoy it, I worked pretty hard on it to make it right. I'm still kind of not happy with part of the ending of this chapter, but you'll see. Read the author's notes again at the end for another special little announcement.  
_

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**_Oathkeeper or Oblivion_**

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When Kairi first started to swim through the fog towards consciousness she felt numb. Her skin prickled and tingled as her nerves worked to help her feel whatever was around her. She stretched her fingers and pressed her palms flat against the softness (_Grass?)_ beneath her and parted her lips in a quiet little moan. There were muffled voices in the air but they stopped as she furrowed her brow and scrunched her nose. She lifted her arm up with some effort, bringing her fingertips up to rub the bridge of her nose. Kairi blinked rapidly; wincing at the pain in her head as she tried to push herself up.

Sora put his hands on her shoulders and gently pushed her back down, "You need some rest, Kairi." He brushed some hair from her face and Kairi couldn't help the little smile that came to her lips as she felt his slightly calloused fingers against her cheek for the first time.

Kairi opened her eyes completely, focusing on Sora and the fact that even though the sky was dark, he didn't have to be in the light to be seen. His face hovered over hers for a moment before he kissed her forehead and pulled her up into his arms, holding her to himself carefully as though she'd break. "S-Sora?"

Kairi felt him smile into her hair, "Yeah, Kairi. It's me."

"She's awake?" Kairi looked up at the familiar voice, grinning as Riku knelt down next to her.

"Yeah," Sora pulled away from her a little and helped her sit up, "Be careful, okay? You passed out on the way here."

Kairi nodded and turned to Riku, then back to Sora- her eyes soaked them up like sponges and she smiled.

They were wearing clothes- _actual_ clothes, not those sweats anymore. Sora was in black, not something Kairi had expected from him, with those black baggy pants with the white pin-lines and yellow bands around them and red pockets. His shirt was dark blue with a little triangle of red outlined with those white pin-lines, and he had a little black jacket on over it.

Her eyes flicked over to Riku and she had to say she expected to see him in all black- he seemed comfortable in it, it suited him. His outfit was simple; long black coat and black pants underneath with matching boots.

Kairi looked down at her own outfit for a moment and was horrified. "What happened to my clothes?" she tugged on the once white fabric of her sweats and groaned, the grass and dirt stains glaring at her.

Sora snickered, "Xion couldn't handle your weight and you two fell through the portal she made here. Since you basically have to jump from one world to the next you two rolled halfway across the Garden before we could catch up to you."

Kairi perked up a little, "Where is Xion?"

Sora glanced at Riku and he spared a look back towards the massive castle behind him, "Somewhere with The King. I'll go get them."

Kairi nodded and watched him leave, chewing on her lip and turning her head in every direction to try and get a look at the surrounding area. She could still see a lot of the landscape despite the dark sky, the grass was a turned blue-green in the night but the flowers- the pinks and whites and yellows, were still vibrant. The bushes were carved and made like fine art and the building swept around the garden, white bricks and blue roofs.

She jumped at the sight of the moving broomsticks and raised her eyebrows, turning back to Sora, "How are they moving?"

Sora shrugged, scratched the back of his head, "They always move. I think it's a spell or something….By the way," he glanced around and lowered his voice, "Don't be surprised when you see The King, okay?"

Kairi tilted her head to the side, "Why?"

"Kairi." Kairi looked up and smiled when she saw Riku coming back towards her and Sora, Xion in tow. Her eyes flicked to the smaller form hidden behind Riku and she leaned over for a better look.

Mickey stepped out, dressed in his red shirt and pants, and grinned, "Nice to meet ya!"

Kairi brought her hand to her lips and raised her eyebrows, "OhmyGod it's Mickey Mouse."

Mickey's eyes grew wide, "Huh? How'd you know my name?"

Kairi laughed, "You're…Well, You're famous. You're…kinda…" she scratched her head and grinned, "You're a cartoon on my world." she raised an eyebrow when she heard Sora and Riku start to laugh, Mickey was grinning now too, "You used to know a guy named Walt?"

--------

Naminé hugged her knees to her chest, tugging the skirt of her dress down to cover herself up as much as she could. It was hard to believe she was really there- a few hours ago she was dragging Kairi up to her art studio to show her latest masterpiece and now…

He stared at her from behind the bars. His eyes were like lanterns, fire. Hell.

She could only stare back. She knew she wasn't going to get out of this alive whether it was death by hypothermia or…whatever _he_ had in store for her. She would never see her home world again.

No more parents- _Mom lazing about in her yard chair with the book light on and Dad sitting at his office, working._

No more Kairi- _Best other half/older sister in the world._

No more painting- _She would paint and draw and do whatever she could until her fingers bled because her creativity would just NOT STOP and she didn't care if she didn't sleep. Her dreams were empty because her imagination was exhausted by the time she stumbled down the stairs to her room._

No more friends- _Selphie sitting at the lunch table watching Tidus's every move while he talked with Wakka about some strange, most likely dangerous, sport. _

No more….Anything.

Naminé let her head fall forward onto her knees and took in a gasp of air so cold her lungs hurt. She let the wispy air out of her mouth and looked up at Ansem, standing behind the bars. His left hand moved up and tugged on the lock, his right shuffled through his pocket for the key.

Naminé watched him walk through the door.

---------

When Kairi heard the plan the group had decided on to get Naminé back her heart skipped a beat.

"Ummm….." she tugged on Sora's hand and he blinked,

"Yeah?" he moved his hand up to her shoulder and she smiled at the touch,

"I…Don't know how to fight."

Sora shook his head, "You won't have to. You're job is to get Naminé, we'll take care of the rest."

Kairi sighed, "But…I wanted to help you guys. "

He smiled, "You will, you'll be helping Naminé." He pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her. Kairi put her arms around his shoulders and he said, "Trust me, when we get there, you'll know what to do. Just don't let anything get in the way of your goal." He pulled back, "You remember how Riku and I used to open up little portals on your world and run through them?" Kairi nodded, "We can do that here too. We'll get there that way- just stay away from the Heartless and get Naminé. If you can get to her and keep her safe then you'll be helping us because we won't need to look after you."

Kairi leaned up and kissed his cheek, when she pulled away he was blushing and she laughed, "Okay."

------

At the same time Kairi leaned up to kiss Sora, Ansem's fist smashed into the side of Naminé's face. She screamed, blood trickling down her chin and dribbling onto her dress. Her porcelain skin was riddled with bruises, cuts, scrapes- she pulled her arms up and covered her face as she curled up on her side. Her ribs heaved when she gasped and warm tears fell. Jaded eyes met hellfire and she scooted away from him, skin burning and bones aching.

Ansem reached down and his fingers found messy blond hair- he yanked her up and she screamed the name of the only person she could think of that would save her- that _had_ saved her.

"_**RIKU!"**_

**--------**

Riku crossed his arms and leaned back against the white stoned wall of the castle. He looked up towards the sky, thoughts straying constantly towards Naminé.

He had wanted to talk to her for so long and now that she was gone, taken away from him before he could save her, he would only blame himself if she was hurt.

He knew she would be.

Riku glanced over at Sora and Kairi; they were walking away from him, heading for The King. The four of them were getting ready to leave to find Naminé- Xion was leading them to a neighboring world called Hollow Bastion where she said Ansem was hiding out. She was the only lead they had, so they had no option other than to trust her and hope for the best. Riku just hoped Naminé was still in one piece by the time they got to her.

A soft breeze picked up and tousled his hair around his shoulders. He pried himself from the wall and ran his hand through his hair, still staring up at the sky. It was quiet in the Garden at night- before The King had ordered him and Sora to watch over Kairi he had gone there often at night. It was soothing, the air was fresh and it was always comfortable.

"_**RIKU!" **_he jumped, pressed his hand to his heart.

He knew who it was without a second thought; "Naminé…" He turned a the sound of footsteps in the grass, his eyes landed on Xion. A few feet back, Sora and Kairi were holding hands and waiting for him. "Are we ready?"

Xion nodded and motioned for him to follow as she turned, he went with her to Sora and Kairi.

Kairi cleared her throat a little, "So….Can we go over the plan again?"

Sora nodded as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a potion, he grabbed Kairi's hand and set it down in it, "Yeah. Xion's going to take us to Hollow Bastion where Ansem has Naminé. When we get there, Riku and I will fight off Ansem while you and Xion get to Naminé. You heal her, get her to a place where there are no Heartless and then Xion will protect you until we finish the fight."

Kairi smiled a little, her eyes betrayed her nervousness.

Riku looked to Xion, "Let's get going." Xion nodded and turned around. She raised her arm up in front of herself and opened her hand, spreading her fingers in the air as she fiddled and tugged at the Darkness she was made of. A small bead of black and purple formed just in front of the center of her palm and she felt the Darkness slowly rise like water in heart. She pulled at it but did not sink into it- it was the metaphorical equivalent of laying down on one of those inflatable pool beds- she drifted over it, occasionally dipping her fingers or toes into it but she stayed above it, not falling in.

A portal of Darkness rose from the ground, strange strands of curled shadow trailing around it's oval edges like calligraphy. Xion walked forward without a second thought and didn't look back to see if the others were following her. She knew they would.

Walking through the portal to Darkness was always strange- like running a mile and then guzzling down a glass of hot water. It was pressing, made the air thick and hard to breathe- at the same time it was cold, freezing, in the realm of Darkness. No sunlight, no warmth.

Kairi squeezed Sora's hand as they followed Xion and Riku through the portal. She shuddered and closed her eyes tight- her stomach lurched and twisted and he turned back as they walked, giving her a reassuring smile.

-------

Naminé reached forward in a futile attempt to crawl forward, fingers pale and shaking as she dug them into the grout between the tile. Her white dress was stained red in so many places, her exposed legs pasty compared to the ugly black splotches on them. Her lip was split, she was fairly certain he had cracked one of her teeth and her left eye was swollen shut. Her ribs screamed with each breath, her hair was knotted and mangled to the point that it seemed no amount of brushing would save it, and it seemed the one thing that he had not hurt was her hands.

No, her hands were intact, and she decided that if she could get out alive that she would never stop drawing.

Ansem smirked and bent down; wrapping one hand around her ankle and pulling her back. She was too tired to struggle and could only push herself over to lay on her back, chest heaving as she couldn't control the tears anymore. Ansem's hand left her ankle and clamped around her throat- he picked her up off the floor and held her up in the air. Her muscles screamed as she grabbed his wrist with her hands and her legs dangled beneath her.

"Give in." he tightened his grip on her neck and she gasped, fighting for air as she choked words out.

"_N-No."_

He growled, orange eyes virulent and bright, and flung his arm to the right, letting go of her throat. She flew through the air for a moment before crashing to the ground, gasping in air and choking on tears.

This was it, she thought, she was done. No more pain. No more hurt or fear or tears. No more.

Ansem walked over to her, Darkness trailing behind him like smoke as he knelt down beside her and curled his fingers into her hair, lifting her head up.

"Now?" he could see in her eyes, which were made more vibrant by her tears, that she was done. He had broken her in just a few hours and he felt the Darkness surge and rush at her as she opened her mouth to respond.

Her voice came out cracked and weary, "Ok-"

"_ANSEM!"_ he looked up in time to see Way to the Dawn spinning through the air. It collided with his nose a moment later, crushing bone and spurting blood as the hilt hit him first and he fell back with a cry of anger. He loosened his grip on Naminé's hair and she could hardly push herself away from him.

Xion had stepped to the side to let Sora, Riku and Kairi in and at the moment Riku was all but flying across the field. He summoned Way to the Dawn again and as his eyes found Naminé, who had turned onto her back again as Ansem let go of her.

Green eyes met blue optics and Riku felt the Darkness in his heart boiling, the Light wrapping around it quickly as his face twisted to a snarl of rage. Sora was beside him in a second but Riku shook his head, "Take care of Naminé."

Sora nodded and grabbed her, carrying her away from the oncoming battle bridal style as he glanced back at Riku. Darkness and Light rose like gray smoke from him, he stepped forward.

Darkness, Riku knew, was never without Light. Light was never without Darkness. It was a simple fact. They never met but there was Dawn, Darkness leading to Light, and there was Twilight, Light leading to Darkness. They were like little accidents that happened when the two entities of Light and Dark got too close to each other, when they mixed it was a delicate equilibrium of the two.

Keeping himself in check when he was angry, let alone as enraged as he was, was difficult to do. Seeing Naminé's broken face and blood stained dress was enough to keep him grounded, but that didn't mean he wouldn't use whatever powers necessary. He had learned how to control his Darkness and balance it out with the Light, he had learned how to sense out where the Dawn lied and how to steep himself into it and soak up its power without falling through Darkness within it.

Diving into the delicate but strong (And sometimes scary) power of Dawn, Riku was washed over in receding nightfall and rising sun- warm and cold at the same time and jolts of power rejuvenating him, revving him up and overall making fear flash in Ansem's eyes as his former captive stood over him and stood tall.

Riku brought Way to the Dawn down, tails of silver and red and black in the air as Ansem smirked and the Guardian grabbed the Keyblade. Riku stared into Ansem's eyes and wondered if he'd be able to control his Darkness long enough to kill him.

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_:D_

_What'cha think? Leave a review on your way out ^_^ _

_SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT-_

_Okay, so I asked for one hundred reviews before the end of the story at the moment I'm at 103. You know what that means....._

_SURPRISE! _

_However, it's going to remain that way until the next chapter, in which case you'll see what it is AFTER the last chapter- meaning I'll have it up for you guys at the same time. It's short, but I seriously love it and I KNOW you guys will too. _

_Now, as a side note- I'll take requests and add them in to that little surprise if you want, so, Oneshot requests are now open, just no Yaoi please, mmkay? _

_Okay- now, let's see how many reviews I get THIS time._

_Go!  
_


	17. Oblivion

_*Cries*_

_The final chapter!!- Plus my little surprise. _

_First of all, I know this chapter is short, but I figured with the extra page or two the surprise adds on you guys wouldn't mind so much. This chapter is my absolute FAVORITE of all of them. I hope you guys love it as much as I do._

_By the way, I tried to make it longer, but I didn't want to kill it. Also, I asked for oneshot ideas and the like...one that I got XD I couldn't get any inspiration for it. So sorry :( _

_Buuuuuut....._

_Enjoy the new chapter!!  
_

_**

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Oathkeeper or Oblivion**_

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Grab. Run. Dodge. Run. Jump. Dodge. _Run. _

Hide.

Kairi pulled Naminé's battered body close to her own; Sora stood over the two of them, Keyblade drawn out and watching the fight between Riku and Ansem closely. Their previous plan of having Kairi grab Naminé and staying someplace even remotely safe while Sora and Riku fought off Ansem had been crumpled up and thrown in the trash the second Sora saw the Guardian.

At the moment, Riku was doing just fine on his own. Sora had been friends with Riku long enough to know that if something was driving him and he was doing okay in a fight by himself, then don't interrupt. The minute Riku had seen Naminé something had changed about him; his eyes grew dark and Sora felt the change, the sudden switch from being pissed to completely furious and livid. That was when the Light and Dark had started to seep from his skin like smoke, and Sora knew then more than ever that Riku could handle himself in the battle. It was his battle, not Sora's, because it was Naminé that had been hurt and not Kairi.

As badly as Sora wanted to help, he sat the battle out to watch over Kairi and Naminé.

Behind him, Kairi had given Naminé the potion and was trying to keep her from passing out. Xion stood beside Sora, curious blue eyes taking in Naminé- the girl she hadn't ever gotten to formally meet and the girl she had been made to look like, who she'd been created after.

Xion pressed her hand to the place on her chest where her heart should've been and felt something shift.

-----

Ansem shuffled back as Riku jumped and brought Way to the Dawn down over his head, letting the Guardian step in again to catch it. The Guardian trapped the weapon in it's hand, staring straight into Riku's eyes as it pulled the Keyblade towards itself and flung Riku off the end of it.

Riku flew through the air but twisted, landing on his feet and sliding back, gaining balance as he bent his knees. He went low to the ground, fingers skimming the floor as he came to a stop, he glared at Ansem and Ansem glared back.

The Guardian moved in front of Ansem and behind it Ansem turned his focus momentarily to Sora. Sora raised his weapon again and got ready to fight but faltered when Ansem brought his hand up, palm facing the sky. He moved his fingers and smoking Darkness came from his fingertips, raising in the air as he laughed.

Riku started to run forward again, summoning his Keyblade from the grips of the Guardian as Ansem tugged and twisted the Darkness Xion was made of.

Kairi looked up as she smoothed back Naminé's hair and saw Xion touch her chest briefly, blue eyes vibrant and staring into her own. The blue flickered to bright yellow and a sword formed in Xion's hand. She slowly turned to Sora and for a moment Kairi didn't understand, until she saw the smirk on Ansem's face and the Darkness leaking from Xion's figure.

"_Sora!"_ Sora jumped and turned, stepping back as he raised his Keyblade just in time to block Xion's attack.

Riku jumped again, this time twisting and landing a perfect corkscrew kick square on the Guardian's face. It fell back, slamming into the wall as Ansem stepped out of the way and summoned up his own swords, two double sided swords with blades that looked like batwings.

Riku landed on one foot and then twisted again, slashing down on one of Ansem's swords. Ansem blocked with one and sliced at Riku with the other, Riku grabbed it and shoved it back, yanking his Keyblade away as he danced back and Guardian flew from the wall and smashed down at the spot Riku had been standing in before with both fists.

Sora didn't know what to do.

Xion was a Heartless. Heartless were bad.

But Xion had been nice before, almost human, and Kairi was screaming not to kill her.

In the meantime, Sora blocked each of Xion's attacks and she stared at him with those yellow lantern eyes and said over and over in a voice that sounded torn, "_Kill me."_

Sora jumped back from one of her attacks, then took a few more steps and raised his Keyblade up, blocking another one of Xion's attempts. His Keyblade caught her sword and he shoved, Xion fell back on the ground and Sora took another few steps backwards and glanced behind himself.

Riku was right behind him, their backs were to each other and Sora said, "How are you holding up?" as he caught another one of Xion's attacks, which were growing more and more violent and powerful, and tripped her.

Riku grunted in response and said, "We need to take them all out."

Xion looked up from her spot on the ground a foot from Sora and started to stand and said, "Sora, _kill me._"

A spark of an idea flickered in Sora's eyes. He half turned to Riku and said, "Riku, I've got an idea."

Riku braced himself as Ansem and his Guardian advanced on them, "What's that now?" he took a step back at the same time Sora did.

"_Duck!" _

Riku and Sora dropped to the floor simultaneously, rolling to the right and to their feet just as Xion jumped and Guardian flew forward. They met in midair and Xion's sword sunk into the Guardian's shoulder at an angle. The Guardian caught her in it's claws and she screamed as those claws sunk into her skin.

Ansem let out a roar of outrage as his Guardian dropped Xion and Xion let go of her sword. She fell to the ground and landed on her knees, then hunched forward, shaking as blood trickled on the ground. The Guardian looked as though it was malfunctioning- it's arms shaking and claws twitching as it too, landed on the ground.

Ansem looked down at the Guardian as it started to be stripped away in slivers of Darkness and shadow, then looked up at Sora and Riku and summoned is swords. He stepped over his fading Guardian and ran at them.

Xion gasped, eyes no longer yellow, she inched her way to the wall and sat down, resting her back to it as she tilted her head up, closing her eyes. Tears fell down her pale cheeks and she listened to the battle go on.

Kairi held Naminé close as the blond finally started to wake up, lifting her head to watch the battle with half lidded eyes.

Riku and Sora dodged Ansem's attacks just as Ansem dodged all of theirs. Ansem would slash down at Riku and he would jump out of the way. Riku would in turn slice at Ansem and he would raise one sword to block, then shove him back just in time to block Sora.

It was, Kairi thought, like a strange sort of dance. A beautiful, scary, perfect sort of dance.

When Ansem tripped Sora and stabbed him through the shoulder with one of his swords, it was no longer a beautiful dance.

It happened like this- Sora ran forward after being knocked back and pulled his Keyblade up, ready to strike. Ansem shoved Riku back and Riku lost his footing, stumbling and landing on his back. Sora jumped and Ansem turned, smacking him out of the air like a common house fly. Sora landed on his stomach and as he went to roll, Ansem pinned him down by his left shoulder. Sora screamed and Ansem let go of his sword, keeping Sora pinned in that one spot, to kick his Keyblade from his hand. It skidded across the ground and stopped a few feet from Kairi.

Riku lunged, carefully heading around Sora, and Ansem turned again. He caught Riku by his wrist and pulled him close- Riku yanked himself away but tripped over Sora. He landed on his back and watched as Ansem stepped over Sora, crushing his heel into his back and making Sora cry out as he struggled to get up.

Kairi watched and decided to join in with their sick dance.

She pushed away from Naminé, being as gentle as she could, and ran.

Ansem hovered over Riku, staring into his eyes, savoring the moment. Riku grabbed his Keyblade at the same time Kairi grabbed Sora's. He shoved it forward and Ansem screamed as Way to the Dawn's edge stuck out his back and Oathkeeper's tip was rammed through his chest.

Ansem stared down at his chest and stomach, hands shaking as he dismissed his swords. His skin slowly turned from tan to black, as though he was being burned. It flaked off and cracked, a few slivers peeling themselves away and returning to the Dark Realm as Ansem's face twisted to horror. He screamed and the Darkness swallowed him whole.

Kairi smiled at Riku a little and he smiled back, shaking his head. Sora coughed and moaned, "Guys? A little help?"

Kairi jumped and Riku laughed, reaching into his pocket to pull out the Hi-Potion he had. He handed it to Kairi and said, "Take care of him, I'll go get Naminé."

Naminé braced herself against the wall, her legs shaking as she attempted to step away. Her legs gave out and she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her waist, pulling her close. She looked up and smiled at Riku as he kissed her forehead.

"Hiya." she laughed as he kissed her cheek and then buried his lips in her hair.

"I'm sorry."

Naminé shook her head, turning around roughly in his arms to wrap her own around his shoulders, "It's okay. You tried, you killed him. It's over now." Riku nodded as she leaned up and kissed his lips softly.

They broke apart as the ground started to shake.

Kairi ran up with Sora, he smiled a goofy grin at Naminé and she gave a little wave as Riku pulled her close.

"We have to get out of here." Sora said. Around them, the bricks in the walls started to crack and shift.

Kairi looked around, "What's happening?"

"This place is bonded with the Darkness." Xion's small, trembling voice a few feet away. They turned to her and Kairi put her hand to her lips. Xion continued to fade but a little smile graced her face, "Ansem's dead, so the Darkness is retreating." Kairi started to take a step towards her and Xion shook her head, "No. Go, now." she raised a trembling hand and opened a portal just behind the group of them. Her hand fell to her lap as the last of her strength left her.

Sora tugged Kairi away as Riku led Naminé in. The portal closed and the last thing Kairi saw of Xion was her smiling face as she leaned her head back against the wall.

------

The King was waiting for them when they got back, eyes wide as Riku helped Naminé through and Sora and Kairi followed after.

"I knew ya could beat him!" Kairi grinned at The King and started to laugh as Naminé looked at him, nearly dumbfounded.

------

Xion looked up at the ceiling, eyes open and content. She was fading slowly, her skin melting away to black as she smiled.

It didn't hurt.

As she closed her eyes and faded away, she felt complete.

------~-----

The next morning, Kairi went down to the Garden and found Sora there. He was wearing the same outfit from the night before and looked as though he hadn't slept. She stepped up to him quietly and tapped his shoulder when she was close enough. He turned and smiled, "Hey, Kairi."

She smiled, "Good morning." he pulled her into an embrace and she asked, "Didn't sleep last night?"

Sora shook his head, "I couldn't…It's just…You left everything for us."

Kairi nodded, her eyes filling with tears at the mere thought of her parents, "I know."

He looked down at her, "Aren't you upset?"

Kairi nodded, "Of course, but Naminé needed me. They would've done the same in my position, I know it." Sora smiled a little, kissed the top of her head and they turned as Naminé led Riku into the Garden, both in their pajamas and Riku looking rather dead as he trudged through the grass. "Besides," Kairi said, "We'll be happy here."

Sora nodded, pulled her close and planted a kiss on her lips. When he pulled away Kairi was blushing and Sora said, "You belong here, Kairi."

* * *

_:D_

_Okay, here's the deal._

_There is *drum roll* an added, special ending! _

_I also just decided to call it an epilogue. ^_^_

_Now, something I need you, my lovely readers, to do. Go to my profile page and vote on my poll, mmkay? I have an inkling, and if I get enough of the right answer, then I'll act on it. _

_Enjoy the special ending! :DDD_


	18. Bonus

_*Sniffles*_

_Thank you, all of my amazing and loyal reviewers! _

_My gift to you, for sticking with me for seventeen chapters. _

_You guys rock ^_^  
_

* * *

**_Oathkeeper or Oblivion_**

**_Special Ending  
_**

-------

It has been one year.

One year has passed since the searches stopped. One year since The Mayor and his wife had held the memorial for their daughters. One year since Ansem had seen Kairi or Naminé.

One year.

And somehow…It seemed longer than that.

It must've been, he decided, because he knew they were really gone, and where they were. He had no idea if they were safe, but he knew they were gone, and he would never see them again.

Out of all three hundred and sixty five days he had read over at least one page of notes, had watched one video- _just to remember. _Just to make sure it was all real.

When her parent's came crashing through his door with a tear stained letter in one hand and box of tissues in the other the morning after Kairi's phone call he was sure he was going to prison- or at least admitted somewhere.

But he wasn't.

He really didn't know how, but…her parents watched the tapes, read the notes and had walked out of the house quietly. They didn't speak to him again until the anniversary memorial service, which was just earlier that morning.

Their words had stunned him- "_Thank you."_

Today, Ansem owned a hospital of his own. After Kairi and Naminé's disappearances became official (As he knew they would) his business had started from out of his home office. Once he passed the suspect list as a possible "abductor" his name was everywhere. The Mayor put out a trusted recommendation for him and….

Now he owned a mental hospital, long story short.

Ansem sighed, running his hand through his hair, and glanced around the room. It was late afternoon now but the sunlight streaming in through the window was bright, clear.

"_Sora, that's one of the boys, uses Light."_

He shook his head; for a day like today it should be just as gloomy outside as he felt inside.

"_The other, Riku, he uses Darkness, Shadow."_

He sighed again, grabbing the notes on the desk- all Kairi's files- and shoved them into that same old folder.

He heard soft laughter and groaned; he had _told_ the nurses not to bring their children in without permission. He was working on getting a day care center put in on the bottom floor but it would take time, something his nurses didn't seem to understand.

More laughter, louder- he huffed and stepped around his desk, still holding Kairi's file, and yanked open his office door. He looked down the hall both ways and saw nothing but nurses and doctors. He raised an eyebrow and sunk back into his office, shutting the door and standing there with his back to his room for a moment. He rested his forehead on the doorframe and thought of Kairi.

"_Miss me?"_

He jumped, his heart skipped a beat and his hand flew to his chest. He turned and saw the red head in the sunlight, transparent as she was, in the pink dress with the blond girl beside her in the _white_ dress and he smiled.

"Kairi?"

Kairi grinned, Naminé smiled and the room grew brighter.

"_We're back."_

_

* * *

-----**End**_**------**

_

* * *

:D_

_I couldn't help myself._

_:D_

_Don't forget the poll, mmkay?_

_I love you guys, best readers ever! 3_


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